The Wages of Sin
by Belladona's Supplicant
Summary: Operation Mi'ihen unfolds very differently, and the party is split up. Yuna is kidnapped, and Tidus loses his memory from exposure to Sin's toxins. It's up to Auron to reassemble the party and rescue Yuna. Ultimately Yuna finds herself entangled in a love triangle with Tidus and an OC. She has to decide how to continue the quest to defeat Sin, and who to save in the process.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: The Aftermath of Mi'ihen**

The wash and spray of the sea rolled in onto the beach, whereupon bodies and weapons lay strewn across the reddened sands. This little stretch of coastal land overlooking the way to Djose Temple was the scene of a gruesome death battle against the world-destroyer, Sin. It was evident that the battle had gone ill for those bold Crusaders who had made an unconventional attempt on Sin's life.

The companions had been scattered during the battle; Summoner Yuna and her Guardians had broken against the assault of Sin's spawn, and the wrath of Sin itself had scorched the earth and shattered the resistance offered by Crusaders, Al-Bhed and all the rest. Tidus was gone; whereto, no one knew yet. Yuna was performing a sending on the beach, and while she tended to the dead she was oblivious to the plight of all the other survivors. Her mind was drifting in the magical realm as she whirled her staff and dispersed the souls of the deceased.

Paine was running along the shore in the fallout of Operation Mi'ihen. She was on her own mission, but when she spotted Yuna waving away spirits on the beach, even she paused for a moment to watch. She soon ran along, however, and made her way to regroup with the rest of her companions.

Elsewhere, Auron was striding through the wreckage of the Al-Bhed weapon and their various machinery in the area. He found Wakka there, running frantically around and shouting for help. Auron hurried toward him.

"What's wrong, Wakka?" Auron shouted to him. Wakka turned and ran to meet him.

"It's Lulu! She's trapped under rubble! We need a healer now!" Wakka cried.

"Take me there!" Auron ordered him, and together they ran through the wastes to find Lulu.

Meanwhile, Seymour was still wandering about the wreckage, searching for Yuna. He had several Guado spellswords with him, as well as two squads of Yevon soldiers. He encountered Kinoc along the way, who had his own retinue of armed men with him. Seymour grinned with his wicked delight, and spoke in his soft, coy voice.

"The battle has ended to your satisfaction, Maester Kinoc?" He said.

"As we knew it would. This operation's failure has ensured the unquestioned authority of Yevon for generations, no doubt. The remaining Crusaders have been excommunicated. They will spread word of this catastrophe, and rumors will spread like wild fire. Now, in the minds of the people, we rule alone." Kinoc replied, with a devious grin. He chuckled contentedly. Seymour secretly despised Kinoc, but he tolerated him for the time being. The pleasure that Kinoc took in the continued misery of the world, and in securing his own luxury and affluence was enough to make Seymour's skin creep. In his own mind, Seymour had the cure for this human disease exemplified by the corrupt old Maesters. He only needed one more thing to complete his ambition.

"So it is then, and no one can stand in our way." Seymour replied.

"And what will you do now, Seymour? Return to Bevelle, or to Guadosalam?" Kinoc asked him.

"I think I shall find Lady Yuna first, and then I shall decide." Seymour answered. Kinoc chuckled again.

"You've got quite a fondness for the girl. I understand. Just be careful. If she disappears now, it will be assumed that she fell under Sin's wrath. But if there are witnesses, rumors will spread and the people will begin to wonder what happened to Lord Braska's legacy and the beloved daughter of all Spira." Kinoc cautioned him.

"No need to worry about that. I shall spirit her away to Guadosalam in secret, and there she will come around to my way of thinking. My people keep Guado business strictly to the Guado. None will know of her confinement there." Seymour assured the old maester. Kinoc nodded with a grin, and then turned to depart with his soldiers. Seymour and his men went down to the beach then. They were unaware that they had been watched; spied by keen eyes hidden in the crags, jagged rocks and caverns of Mushroom Rock Road. Another party followed his own in clandestine manner, paralleling their descent to the shore.

It wasn't long before Seymour spotted Yuna where she sat exhausted and dejected by the edge of the water, watching the rolling waves come in reddened with blood while pyre flies danced and shimmered over the surface of the sea. Seymour went down onto the white and bloody sands then to speak with her.

"Lady Yuna, it is time to go. You should come with me now, since your companions are missing. I will take care of you." Seymour said to her.

"I am grateful for your offer, Maester Seymour, but I can't leave yet. Not while he's still missing. I have to wait for him to come back." Yuna refused gently.

"You are speaking of Tidus, aren't you? Where did he go?" Seymour asked.

"He swam out into the water, chasing after Sin. No one has seen him since." Yuna replied softly, and in a weary, trembling voice.

"Then he has surely lost his senses. When he calms down he will return, and then he can find his way. I will leave men to keep a lookout for him, but you should come along with me. It is not safe for you to be out here alone." Seymour urged her. Yuna sighed deeply, and hesitated in silence. Finally she spoke again.

"I greatly appreciate your concern, Maester Seymour, but I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for leaving him, and all of my friends. I have to find them first." She insisted. Seymour grimaced faintly with displeasure.

"Very well, Lady Yuna. Have it your way." He said. Seymour turned to his men and gave them a nod, beckoning for them to seize the young girl. Three of them rushed forward then, laughing as they grabbed Yuna and lifted her up. One of the biggest and mightiest of the soldiers slung her over his shoulder, paying no mind to how she struggled and screamed.

"What are you doing!? Where are you taking me?" Yuna screamed.

"Bind her hands, and blindfold her." Seymour ordered them.

"Maester Seymour! What is this about?" Yuna demanded from him in shock.

"Your companions are scattered, Yuna. I am taking you to Guadosalam with me. You will be safe there." He said to her, offering half-hearted assurances. His men bound her as he ordered and carried her up to the road where a carriage awaited. Seymour had his men stow Yuna inside the carriage, binding her so that she could not escape. The driver urged on the two chocobos that pulled the carriage at a slow, leisurely pace. Seymour and his soldiers walked along Mushroom Rock Road in front of the wagon, never minding the scenery around them, since most of the fiends in the area had been collected up by Sin in its passing. It was only when they had marched halfway toward the fork in the road leading to Djose and the Moonflow, that they saw a group of warriors dressed in black come marching down the road toward them. Seymour raised his hand and called for his own men to halt.

"What is going on here? Be on your guard!" Seymour commanded them, but just then an arrow with a bladed tip made of red steel came flying straight into the heart of the man at the front of the formation. He fell over dead, and all of Seymour's men reached for their weapons. The warriors in black garb began shouting jubilantly then, and they marched forth at a brisk pace. Once they were within a few hundred feet, many of them began to dash forward at a sprint.

These men were clothed in black tunics, or else wore dark trousers and were naked above the waist. They wore armor-plated belts that covered their midriff and large leather bracers, some scaled with red steel, and red steel plates on their shins. They were covered with black or red tattoos depicting skulls, severed heads, or skeletons, sometimes impaled on spears or swords. Many of them had red war paint covering their faces and bodies. They were armed with swords, tomahawks, axes and bows, a few carried bayoneted rifles and carbines.

"Who are they?" Seymour demanded with a shout. One of the more seasoned veterans in his bodyguard answered him.

"Tribal warriors, who live hidden in the wastes and secret places of Spira. They are the Red Blade Tribe, a very fierce and vicious band of marauders. We're in for a fight, sir!" The soldier told him.

In the next instant a dozen warriors fell upon them with hatchets and machetes, killing several of the soldiers with ease and engaging the rest in a brutal battle of life or death. The soldiers opened fire and killed or wounded them, but a dozen more followed up the assault and took down more of Seymour's guards. These tribal warriors were expert fighters and all cooperated together as they weaved in and out of the lines of battle, switching or trading weapons among themselves, and thus it seemed that they had an unlimited arsenal. Seymour went to his Guado sorcerers and together they conjured up a protective aura around each other, and then summoned fiends to guard them. The tribal warriors released their hounds then, and suddenly three bloodthirsty lupines came barreling down the road and attacked the fiends that the Guado had manifested. Seymour summoned up more fiends and protected himself with a magical barrier, but his soldiers were soon dead and the tribals rallied into a mass before him, cheering and shouting their war cries. One of their warlords was out in front of his men, chanting the name 'Setanta' over and over.

"Setanta, the devil-killer!" One of the warriors shouted. Then suddenly the crowd of warriors parted in the middle, and a lone youth came striding between them with a large, ravenous black lupine walking at his side. This young warrior was tall, lean and lithe of figure, with muscular arms. He was clothed in baggy black trousers and black boots, and wore a black cloak around his shoulders that covered his upper body. Red hounds were embroidered on each leg of his trousers and also on both sides of his cloak. He reached one hand out of the folds of his cloak and unclipped it. As the black, shadowy cloak fluttered and glided away from his figure, his bare upper body was revealed. His stomach and chest were rippling with muscle and covered with intricate tattoos. Tattoos spanned across his back and over his shoulders, depicting devils, hounds, crossed blades, and ancient glyphs or symbols. He took a large curved glaive and a gleaming hatchet from their places on his belt and leaned back, breathing deep and lifting his arms wide before he lunged forward with a sudden burst of power. (Setanta's battle theme is "Cursed Giant" from DMC2)

The youth came charging down the red dust of the road with his raging black lupine dashing just in front of him. When they crashed against the wall of fiends that Seymour had called up, there was a lightning strike over the sea and the sound of rolling thunder. The youth slashed his way through fiends with ease, and his lupine tore them apart with savage jaws. Both of them had red eyes, and they gleamed as the pair reveled in their bloodletting and battle frenzy. The youth hurled his glaive and it killed one of Seymour's Guado guards. His hatchet came flying across the air and killed the other next.

Seymour thought he was disarmed them, and conjured up more fiends. The young warrior reached behind his back then and pulled two pistols from their holsters. They were black from the handles to the upper receivers, of which one was dark gray and the other was gleaming red steel. The barrels began blazing then, and the youth flew through his enemies like a whirlwind, unleashing a veritable bullet storm. Seymour frantically began conjuring again, but one of the bullets shot through his upheld forearm. Blood splashed out and the wound fizzled with heat and smoke. Seymour groaned in pain and gripped his wound with his hand. The blood was seeping out between his fingers.

He knew he could not win the battle now, and so he ran to the carriage and unfastened one of the chocobos. He jumped on the bird's back and urged it onward, back down the road to the site of operation Mi'ihen. The carriage driver took the other chocobo and fled along with him, leaving Yuna helpless in the back. The tribal warriors cheered as they watched their enemy flee, and they fell into the battle with their champion and crushed the remnants of the fiends. They looted the bodies of their foes and collected their weapons, while the young warrior and his hound walked to the carriage. He opened the door and saw Yuna bound inside. He lifted the bandana from around her face, and Yuna's bright innocent eyes beheld him, widened with fright and surprise.

The young warrior whooped with triumphant glee and lifted her out of the carriage. He carried her out across the road, and his comrades cheered as they saw the girl that their champion had captured. He carried her over his shoulder as the marauder band marched across the red dust and gravel up a steep climb to the top of the rocks and precipices overlooking the road. They crested this ridgeline and went into the rocky ravines and caverns of the region of Djose. This area was so cloistered by giant rocks and boulders, and so cavernous, that it was practically a natural maze.

The war party walked a ways through this barren land until they came to a settlement cradled between three tall rock mountains. There the men went on to meet the rest of their people. The young warrior slid Yuna from over his shoulder and sat her down on a smooth rock beside the narrow path. He untied the bandana over her mouth then and permitted her to speak.

"Where have you taken me?" She asked desperately, and she began to weep.

"To my village, the home of the Red Blade Tribe." He answered plainly.

"Who are you?" She asked. He grinned wickedly.

"I am Setanta, son of Suldane, of the Red Blade Tribe. I was raised to be a warrior and fiend hunter. From childhood, my father worked to purge the fear from my heart. I am proud to say that he succeeded." He told her. Yuna gaped at him in fright and dismay, but he merely smiled unabashedly. Setanta had tawny skin and straight black hair that tussled around his head and spiked down across his brows, above his amber red eyes that burned with the flames of vigor and confidence. He was incredibly handsome, and his body was lean and lithe and rippling with muscles. His black lupine, Skal, was his closest companion. The hound wore a spiked collar, and much like his master he was lean and powerful, full of vitality and sanguineous luster.

"What are you going to do with me?" Yuna asked him nervously. Setanta's grin widened.

"We'll see. First we'll go my father's yurt, and hear his counsel." The fiery youth said to her with contentment in his sultry voice. He grabbed her up again and hoisted her over his shoulder, unaffected by her whimpering and dismay. He carried her off toward the colorful yurts and campfires of the clan's settlement.

On the dust and rocks of Operation Mi'ihen's battlefront, Auron and Wakka were struggling with all their might to lift a piece of metal that had fallen from the machina weapon used in the battle. It was crushing Lulu's leg. They couldn't budge it. Out in the water along the coast, a body was floating in to shore. It was Tidus. He woke up as his back brushed against the sands, and he opened his eyes to see the gulls flapping and crooning overhead. Tidus slowly sat up and glanced around him, seeing an unfamiliar terrain. He soon spotted the two men and heard their shouts of frustration and laborious struggle.

"What's happening over there?" He called to them.

"Get over here and help us!" Auron shouted. Tidus could sense the urgency in the old man's gruff, aged voice, and he sprang to his feet immediately to dash to their aid. When he arrived there he saw Lulu passed out, and her mangled and bloodied right leg. He reflexively jumped beside Wakka and grabbed hold of the large metal plate, and together they gave a final desperate heave. They finally lifted the plate and Auron tipped it over with a final burst of might, so that it fell back away from Lulu. Wakka instantly snatched her up and began carrying her to the tents where monks had been tending to the wounded Crusaders. Auron and Tidus chased after him.

"What happened here?" Tidus asked Auron as he ran alongside him.

"What does it look like? Sin crushed the whole operation. We barely survived." Auron said grimly.

"What? What operation are you talking about? What's going on?" Tidus asked, puzzled. Auron stopped then and gazed at Tidus in bewilderment. Tidus stopped running then and strode back to face the old man.

"What is it?" Tidus asked him.

"Look at me, let me see your eyes." Auron demanded. Tidus was suddenly shocked and his face filled with the light of recognition.

"Wait a minute… I know you! You're Auron! Where are we?" Tidus asked him. Auron understood what had happened then. He grimaced in dismay.

"Your memory was lost. You went chasing after Sin, and the toxins went to your head. What else can you remember?" Auron asked him.

"I don't know, I guess… I remember…" Tidus said, pausing in contemplation. He suddenly realized that he could only remember Zanarkand, and the strange titan creature that had attacked it. He could think of nothing else.

"Do you remember her? Yuna?" Auron asked him.

"Yuna?" Tidus asked, puzzled. Somehow that name did not feel unfamiliar, and he could not deny that it conjured a deep and mysterious feeling within him, but no face appeared in his mind's eye. "I don't think I can…" He admitted.

"This is bad. Everything has gone to hell now, and all it took was one wrong move. We have to find her, Tidus. Listen to me very carefully, this is the most important thing I can tell you; We have to find Yuna. The girl is the key to the fate of this world, and your destiny. If you don't believe me, just wait. But We have to find her and protect her. We have to find the rest of our companions, if they are alive. Come with me." Auron beckoned him, and then they ran toward the relief camp where Wakka had taken Lulu. Tidus was utterly confused, but somehow he knew that Auron was right, and besides he had no one else to trust in this strange land.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: The Red Blade Tribe**

Auron and Tidus arrived at the relief camp and saw the grisly results of the operation. Soldiers with missing arms and legs, and mangled bodies were laying everywhere. Auron went to the tent where nurses, doctors and priests were busying themselves as if they were in a gore-riddled beehive, and he took Tidus into the tent with him. He saw Wakka there, sitting beside the cot where Lulu lay incapacitated. Auron walked up beside him then, and observed the dour look upon Wakka's weary face. Bandages and splints were applied to Lulu's leg.

"What did they tell you?" Auron asked him softly.

"She won't be able to walk for a long time, and maybe never without a crutch. She'll always have a limp, and she'll never run again." Wakka replied grimly.

"Time will tell. She's stronger than the doctors may have given her credit for." Auron said, trying to reassure his sullen comrade.

"Either way, she's finished as a guardian. I can't leave her, Auron. I have to make sure she gets back to Besaid safely." Wakka said.

"No one can blame you for that." Auron said.

"Sure about that? Somehow I feel like I've messed everything up. First Chappu, then Yuna decides to be a summoner, and now this happens to Lulu… I can't protect anyone that I care about." Wakka fumed angrily.

"They all made their decisions in good conscience. A man may strive to protect his loved ones, but he can't interfere with anyone's destiny. We all have to make our own choices in life." Auron said solemnly.

"Well, I've decided that I'm finished with the pilgrimage, and with Yevon. Why should we kill ourselves for a few years of peace, and they have to go on lording over people anyway. We might as well live freely, while we can. Auron, when you find Yuna, you should tell her that." Wakka urged him.

"It's nothing that she doesn't already know. By the way, do you have any idea where Kimahri might be?" Auron asked pointedly. Wakka shook his head.

"The last time I saw him was before the Crusaders charged, and he was with Yuna. Hopefully he is keeping her safe." Wakka surmised.

"If he were still with her, I know he'd have brought her to regroup here. Something must have happened. I'm going to get started looking for them." Auron said.

"Auron, good luck, and stay safe." Wakka said to him in parting. Auron merely nodded, and then he turned and walked out of the tent with Tidus following him closely.

"What is going on here, Auron? Who was that guy, and why is talking about "killing ourselves" for a little bit of peace? What is Yevon, anyway?" Tidus asked a flurry of questions, and Auron had little time to give answers. He continued to walk as he spoke.

"You're going to find that this world functions very differently from your Zanarkand. The giant that attacked your city was called Sin, and it lives here in Spira. This whole world is in a state of perpetual chaos, because of Sin's destructive powers. The people here have devised a system for battling Sin, and it is called Yevon; it is an army, a priesthood, a government and a religion all in one. The people of Spira live under its authority and guidance, for the most part. The girl, Yuna, is a priestess of Yevon, but not merely an acolyte; she is a summoner. She has powers that can defeat Sin, for a period of time. Sin always returns, however, and the cycle of chaos and struggle continues. This has been going on for a thousand years." Auron explained to him briefly.

"If this summoner Yuna can defeat Sin, then what happened during the battle?" Tidus asked.

"Her powers grow as she communes with Aeons, the summoned beings that can fight Sin. She is on a pilgrimage now, to gather up these Aeons for a battle with Sin. She needs the Final Aeon, before she can confront Sin and defeat it. This operation was a failed attempt to defeat Sin with machine weaponry. You can see how ineffective it was." Auron told him.

"So she needs to finish her pilgrimage… what do we have to do with that?" Tidus asked.

"We have to protect her, until she finishes the pilgrimage. We are her guardians." Auron replied.

"Protect her from what?" Tidus asked, dumbfounded.

"You'll see for yourself, very soon." Auron assured him, and he kept marching along the beach toward Mushroom Rock Road.

The young warrior Setanta carried Yuna into the village, amid the cheering and laughter of the whole tribe. The men laughed and jeered, the women chuckled, and the unmarried young girls cried out in protest, pleading with Setanta to choose them instead of this captured girl. Setanta ignored them all and pulled open the flap covering the entrance to the chieftain's large yurt in the center of the village.

He carried Yuna into a lantern and candle-lit space with a warm atmosphere that smelled of smoke and incense, and freshly cooked food stewing in a cast iron cauldron. Sitting upon a pile of plush cushions at the back of the yurt was the chieftain's wife, and two of his consorts. A tall, broad-shouldered man stood by the fire in the central shaft of the yurt. His long, straight black hair fell down to the middle of his back, and he had a thick black beard, speckled with silvery gray. His eyes were bright and steel gray. He had a muscular figure with long legs and long arms, his bare forearms were bulging with muscle. He wore a brown leather vest lined with fur, and a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He wore dark brown trousers and tall leather boots, and a belt lined with bullets and shells.

Setanta entered the yurt and tossed Yuna onto the floor, upon a rug a few feet away from the stove in the middle of the room. The older man turned his steely gaze upon them both.

"Father, I captured this girl in my last raid." Setanta told him. Suldane looked down upon her with a satisfied gleam in his eyes.

"I see. She looks a bit scrawny." Suldane said. His voice was deep and polished. He stepped over Yuna and grabbed her by the wrist. He pulled her up and made her stand on her feet. He gripped her upper arm and put one hand under her chin, tilting her face up. His hands were huge and his fingers were rough and calloused. Yuna was afraid to move; she had no idea what he might do if she angered him. He was handsome, much like Setanta, but he looked merciless and unsympathetic.

"She's half Al-Bhed." Suldane said as he gazed into her differently colored eyes.

"I thought so too." Setanta agreed.

"Do you think she's strong enough to give you children?" Suldane asked him skeptically. Yuna suddenly felt his hand grab her waist and her hips. She moaned in protest. "She's too skittish." Suldane concluded.

"I think she'll do fine, for a first wife." Setanta said.

"The tribe needs warriors, Son. The world needs great men. We don't need doltards or cowards." Suldane forewarned him sternly.

"I have a feeling about her. I think she'll give me mighty sons, and fair daughters." Setanta argued.

"Really? Well it's your future, my boy. I won't be chieftain forever. You have a war to win, and you'll need lieutenants. But so be it… if you're determined to have her, then we'll hold the ceremony tomorrow." Suldane conceded.

"You can't do this to me!" Yuna cried out. "I have to finish my pilgrimage!"

"What?" Setanta said.

"A Yevonite. She's one of their demon priestesses." Suldane said with disgust.

"What should we do with her?" Setanta asked.

"Call the shaman. He can cleanse her of her possession. Until then, you'll have no congress with her, and no one else in the tribe may speak with her or touch her." Suldane ordered grimly. Setanta left the tent, and Suldane grabbed Yuna's hands and tied them together at the wrists. Setanta returned after a few minutes, followed through the tent entrance by a wrinkled, thin old man in black robes. He wore beads of jade and carnelian, and his bony fingers clung to a gnarled wooden staff. His long white beard was the color of fresh snow, and his blue eyes gleamed with magical light.

"This is the girl, Conchubar." Suldane said to the old man. The elder gazed upon Yuna and nodded grimly.

"Indeed, she's possessed for sure." The man said in a weathered voice.

"Should we kill her now, and be done with it?" Suldane asked, with hostility brimming in his voice. Setanta was visibly unnerved by the suggestion, and he shifted uncomfortably.

"No, there's no need for that. Bring her to my hut, and I can release her from their hold." Conchubar assured him.

"So be it." Suldane agreed, and he pulled Yuna up and forced her out of his yurt. He held both of her arms tightly, and made her walk through the village toward its north side, where the shaman's hut was located. His tent was black and ringed with green and red ropes, tied into intricate knot work. The flap of the tent was half red and half green. Conchubar stepped through and flung the flaps open for them, and as Setanta and Suldane pushed Yuna inside she smelled an atmosphere thick with incense and damp air. The Shaman's hut had a brazier burning and sage incense smoking from an altar, upon which sat the image of an Angel with golden wings and a gleaming golden halo above his fair brow. Shimmering sapphire eyes gleamed, inlaid within the image of the Angel. His robes were black, and a green and red tartan rested over his right shoulder and wove around his waist. The face, hands and feet of the image were inlaid with perfectly etched ivory, white as camphor. His hair was inlaid amber. A heart of emerald was set in his chest, and a red six-pointed star was emblazoned upon the right sleeve of his robes. His fingers made esoteric signs, and a countenance of tranquility was apparent upon his wise features. This Angel was the deity of the Red Blade Tribe.

The old shaman stepped slowly up to the altar, and plucked a hanging clump of dried sage to toss in the brazier. It smoked blue, and filled the tent with an even thicker smell of the herb. The old sage Conchubar faced the altar and raised his right hand, making the sign of a hexagram, and he spoke with a reverent voice.

"Lord Remphan, Angel of the dark sun and the circle of power, ye who are the arbiter of powers and maketh the powers to manifest, ye who wields a sword of fire, and a staff of elements, and ye holdeth the flux of time and the seasons in your rings of power, and maketh all things to flow according to thy will, now I maketh thy sign and call upon thy name! I beseech thee to descend and make thy powers apparent, and drive out all foul things before ye!" Conchubar said, and he took an ornate dagger from the altar and dipped it in a cup of alcohol. He touched the tip of the blade into the brazier, and the blade glowed aflame.

Yuna felt something quiver in her stomach then, and her heartbeat fell faint. She was almost too weak to stand. She could feel a pulsing force within her limbs and her chest, and soon she saw an aura of violet light scintillating faintly around her like a haze. Conchubar turned to her and stepped toward the aura, pointing the fiery dagger at her heart. Yuna tried vainly to resist, but she was too weak to squirm out of Suldane's iron grip. She heard a buzzing in her ears, and whispers, and she wondered if it was in her mind or if the others could hear it. Conchubar's aged features and gleaming eyes were intently set upon the tip of his blade, and the flames turned blue. He plunged it into the dark violet haze, and he raised his voice with astounding power.

"By the powers of my Lord, whose ascending age of light is imminent, I cast you out, devils! Be gone! By the sword of fire, Yevon is banished and damned!" Conchubar shouted, and suddenly the hazy aura dispersed and fell away with a hissing and screeching noise. The sound of spirits fleeing away from Yuna's frame was melancholy and fleeting, as the pyre flies of the Fayth appeared and fled out from her body. The pyre flies whined and flew away out of the tent, scattering on the air. Yuna was covered in cold sweat then, and she felt light-headed. Her entire body felt weightless and free of all worldly pressures for that moment, and she collapsed into Suldane's arms.

"It's done! Praise be to the Lord Remphan! He has liberated her soul, and cleansed it of all evil!" Conchubar declared with fervor, and from outside the tent there was cheering and shouting of praise from the villagers. Setanta grinned contentedly at Yuna then, and Suldane hoisted her up in his mighty arms with a shout.

"She is saved! Praise the Lord! I adopt her as my own!" He cried triumphantly.

"Then I shall name you her god-father in the sight of the Lord, and bless you all." Conchubar said, and he placed the dagger in a copper pot of holy water, and it sizzled and was still. He took a fresh branch of holly leaves then and dipped it into the holy water, and then waved it over Setanta, Suldane and Yuna. When he had finished, Suldane carried Yuna out of the tent with Setanta at his side, presenting her to the whole village.

Yuna was so light-headed and elevated by this strange new power that she did not know how to respond to everything that had just happened. She told herself that she should be terrified of losing the Fayth, but somehow in her heart she couldn't summon the dread that Yevon would have expected of her. She felt as if she had been released from a dead weight that otherwise would have sunken her. As nervous as she might have been and likely would be again, to be in the possession of these strange barbarians, for the moment she felt as though she drifted on air. Dying for Yevon was no longer an obligation, yet for what would she live now? And where were all of her friends? What would they say when they finally found her, only to discover that her pilgrimage had been broken? She tried to think through it all, but the clear blue sky and white clouds overwhelmed her view, and the golden sunlight cleansed her mind. She said nothing as Suldane carried her back to his yurt.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: A New Comrade**

Auron and Tidus walked together down the red and dusty Mushroom Rock Road. The occasional fiend hampered their path, but they continued at a determined pace. Tidus beheld the scenery of this strange new place and wondered about the rest of Spira. So far it seemed to be a rather bleak and desolate place.

"Is all of Spira like this?" Tidus asked.

"Like what?" Auron asked for clarification.

"So… barren and dry, and lonely…" Tidus said gloomily.

"No, not like this. In fact, most of Spira is very pleasant. You'll see once we get to the delta of the Moonflow River. It's a very lush place." Auron assured him.

"Alright then. I was hoping so…" Tidus remarked.

"We'll be at Djose Temple soon. It's a bit of a strange place, where machina still survives from the old days. Hopefully Yuna and Kimahri will be there. If they aren't, we'll have to turn back." Auron said.

"Turn back and go where?" Tidus asked in dismay.

"To search the beach for her, and the surrounding area. We're not leaving the Djose region until we find her." Auron said firmly.

"Who is Yuna exactly? What is she like?" Tidus asked, making conversation.

"She's the only daughter of Lord Braska, the last summoner to defeat Sin, and my old comrade. Your father was with us then, as well." Auron told him.

"My father?! What are you talking about?" Tidus demanded hastily. The very mention of Jecht was enough to unhinge him, it seemed.

"Yes, that's right. He was transported here, much like yourself. He went with us on the pilgrimage, and we defeated Sin, for a time." Auron said.

"For a time? But now Sin is back again? How long ago was this pilgrimage you went on with my… with Jecht?" Tidus asked.

"It was ten years ago by now." Auron replied.

"Then how long does it take for Sin to come back? Why hasn't anyone gotten rid of it for good?" Tidus asked.

"Why indeed. That's up to you to find out for yourself. Now pay attention. We need to find Yuna. If you spot a big blue cat person walking around, tell me." Auron instructed him.

"A what?" Tidus asked, perplexed.

"His name is Kimahri. He's a Ronso brave from Mount Gagazet. He has been taking care of Yuna for ten years now." Auron informed him.

Tidus was about to ask him more, but he could sense that Auron was tired and anxious, and not in the mood for more questioning. They walked along in vigilant silence, and Tidus scanned the sides of the road. He happened to look down into the waters below the edge of the road, and he saw something floating on the waves. It was a person; a young woman. She looked like she was unconscious and rolling helplessly with the tide.

"Hey!" Tidus shouted. The young woman did not respond. Tidus ran to the edge and looked down. It was a fairly long drop down, and he had no idea how shallow the water may have been.

"What are you doing?" Auron demanded.

"There's someone down there!" Tidus shouted, and then he ran to the ledge and sprang as far as he could over it, diving into the sea below. Auron was yelling something after him, but Tidus couldn't hear it. He plunged into the water and surfaced as swiftly as he could. He saw the young woman adrift a few yards from him, and he swam to her side. Her eyes were closed, and she was unconscious. Tidus immediately grabbed hold of her and began pulling her to the shore. Once he reached the sandy shallows he stood up and pulled her onto the beach. He laid her down, and saw that she had a bloody wound on her midriff, bleeding through her dark gray military fatigues. Her hair was black and short, falling around her face and around her head. Two braided locks hung from the sides of her face over her temples, and her straight bangs fell down around her eyes. As Tidus held her in his arms, suddenly she opened her eyes. They were blazing red and filled with a somber light.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"My name is Tidus. Just relax, I'll find help for you…" he told her.

"Just leave me…" she told him wearily. Tidus was bewildered.

"What? No way! Just hang in there; I'll get you out of here." He assured her, and then Tidus lifted her up in his arms and started down the beach, looking for a way to get back onto the road. He heard Auron's voice, and looked up to see him leaning over the ledge above.

"You're going to have to walk down the beach the rest of the way to Djose Temple. There's no other way back up to the road. I'll meet you there." Auron said.

"Alright. I'll be there soon." Tidus shouted back to him. Tidus kept walking down the beach toward a cloister of giant rocks he could see before him. He spoke to the young woman as he walked along; "You'll have to be patient with me. We have to walk just a little bit further."

"I can walk." She said to him.

"Are you sure?" He asked, concerned.

"Yes, thank you." she insisted, and so he carefully let her down. As she stood close to him then, she gazed up into his cerulean eyes. In that instant, a beam of something peculiar and potent shot between them. She looked away then and began walking down the beach, as if she was unhurt. Tidus merely watched her in amazement, but then she turned back and said to him, "Are you coming?"

Tidus quickly stepped up beside her and together they walked at an easy but steady pace toward the bridge and the large boulders of Djose Temple. Tidus realized that he still hadn't asked her name.

"So, what's your name?" He asked.

"Call me Paine." She answered.

"Paine… alright then. You're a soldier, aren't you?" He asked.

"I was… something like that. But it all seems to have fallen apart on me. Now I don't know what I am." She said wistfully.

"Really? Because of the operation?" He asked.

"Yeah…" Paine said, not volunteering any information about her own mission.

"Don't feel too bad about it. I saw what you were up against. Sin destroyed my home city, and that's why I'm here now. I've lost my memory… Auron says it will come back eventually. But I understand the feeling that you've lost your way." He told her sympathetically. Paine glanced sidelong at him, and nodded gently in agreement. Somehow, she had a feeling that she could trust him. He seemed to be a caring person.

"Thank you, for pulling me out of the water. If you hadn't come along, I might have drowned." She said gratefully.

"I dunno… you seem really tough. I think it would take a lot to kill you, if you survived an assault on Sin. But I am glad that you're alright now… still, we should make sure we find a healer to take care of your wound." Tidus said.

"I won't disagree with that." Paine said, pressing a hand against her wound. It was still bleeding slowly.

"You sure you can walk? I'm not saying I doubt you, but I don't want anything bad to happen if you lose too much blood." Tidus asked her, with concern in his voice.

"I'll let you know if I start feeling faint." Paine assured him.

"Alright." Tidus conceded, and they walked onward to a rough patch of ascending rocks that led up to the road right in front of the bridge to Djose Temple. Auron met them there.

"Are you two alright?" Auron asked them.

"Yeah, but she needs to see a healer." Tidus informed him. He nodded and turned to face Paine.

"And who are you, young lady?" Auron asked her, extending his hand in greeting.

"My name is Paine. It's an honor to meet you, Sir Auron." She said, and shook his hand.

"You know about Auron?" Tidus asked, puzzled.

"I've heard of him. Most people have. He helped defeat Sin a decade ago." Paine answered.

"So you're famous here in Spira?" Tidus asked him. Auron abruptly laughed, a loud and boisterous laugh that took them both by surprise. Auron grinned in amusement.

"Famous, or infamous… depends on who you ask." He said with grim humor. He turned and walked across the bridge then, and both Tidus and Paine strode along after him.

"What did he mean by that?" Tidus asked.

"Just what he said. People around Spira know and respect Auron, but there are a lot of higher-ups in Yevon who are suspicious of him." Paine replied.

"Suspicious of him for what?" Tidus followed up.

"For still being here." Paine said, and she strode ahead briskly.

The three of them arrived at the giant stone pillar of Djose Temple, and Tidus saw the door arch at the base of the structure. He had to admit that the stone structure looked impressive, but he had no idea yet as to what lay beneath it. Auron went into the travel agency and trading post on the side of the road in front of the temple. A temporary relief tent had been set up behind them, for the wounded Crusaders coming down the road. Tidus went with Paine into the tent. More wounded Crusaders were lying on cots inside, while healers and nurses tended to them.

"Can I help you?" One of the nurses asked when she saw them enter.

"Can you do anything for my wound?" Paine asked her, and the young nurse nodded and retrieved her kit of tools and bandages. She took Paine behind a partition and removed the jacket of her military fatigues, to tend to her injury. The nurse came back from behind the partition to speak to Tidus.

"She will be with us for a short while. I'm afraid we have little room here, but you can wait for her at the travel agency. Yevon's blessings upon you." She said, dismissing him gently. Tidus nodded and left the tent. He saw Auron walk out of the travel agency then, and strode toward him.

"No one has seen Yuna, or Kimahri. Let's check the temple." Auron said, and he turned and headed for the doorway. As he approached, suddenly the stone shell surrounding the temple cracked and split apart, and bolts of electricity shout out from the walls, holding the boulders suspended in the air, circling the tower. They strode into the doorway and found an electrified realm within, and several priests and caretakers awaited them. Auron stepped confidently up to them and questioned them. After a few minutes he returned to apprise Tidus of what he had found.

"Apparently Kimahri was here, and he asked about Yuna. He left a while ago, to find her." Auron said. The anxiety and anger was evident in his voice.

"Well, at least we've got another person on the search then." Tidus said carefully, trying to encourage him and lighten his burden. Auron grimaced.

"If Kimahri is not with her… that's incredibly bad news. I'm not sure what may have happened to her, but I have a feeling… we'll have to go back, see if we can find anything. If not, then we'll go back to Luca and try to find some answers." Auron concluded. Tidus simply nodded and said nothing, and followed the gruff old warrior out of the temple. As they walked across the sandy open stretch toward the travel agency, they saw the girl Paine walk out of the trading post and come striding toward them. She had bought a new shirt a leather vest lined with fur. She wore thick leather vambraces on her forearms, with steel plates over her knuckles. On the back of her vest was embroidered an Angel with a fiery sword and a silver shield, along with the words "Dare to Win" in flaming red letters above it. Apart from that, she still wore the baggy, dark gray military trousers and black boots of her soldier's combat uniform. She had a long sword sheathed at her side, hanging from a broad, armored belt around her waist.

She was striking, to be sure, and very pleasing to look upon. Paine was a beautiful and energetic young woman, but more than that she was unlike any woman that Tidus had seen before. She exuded courage and strength, as if spiritual fire breathed through her in every step, and gleamed from her eyes in every glance. He watched her in a mesmerized trance for a moment, until she stood before Auron and spoke in her crisp, confident voice.

"Sir Auron, I want to help you and Tidus in your mission. I'll go with you as long as my sword can be of use to you. I have to repay him for saving my life." Paine told him. Tidus gasped in amazement.

"Do you even know what our mission is?" Auron asked her.

"I'm assuming that you're out to defeat Sin. Whatever else needs to be done along the way, I'll be happy to help with it." She insisted. Auron nodded solemnly, his spirits lifted somewhat by the acquisition of a new comrade.

"Fair enough. We're going to search for our summoner; she was separated from us during Operation Mi'ihen, along with one of our other companions. Her name is Yuna, she is the daughter of Lord Braska. It's of utmost importance that she is found, and continues her pilgrimage." Auron informed Paine of their duties.

"I understand. Let's get started." Paine said.

"Are you able to travel, with your wound?" Auron asked her.

"Yes. It won't be a problem." Paine assured him. Auron nodded slowly.

"Alright. Let's go." He said, and the three of them marched back across the bridge and down the length of Mushroom Rock Road, on the way to the aftermath of Operation Mi'ihen.

In the camp of the Red Blade Tribe, Yuna and her captors were all gathered within the chieftain's yurt for a feast. All of them sat upon rugs or cushions around a long table that sat low close to the floor, upon which roasted meat, rice, foraged roots and tubers, fruits and various other treats were stacked from end to end. Suldane sat at the head of the table, and Setanta was to his right side, with Yuna sitting quietly next to him, making herself as unnoticeable as possible. It did nothing to help her though. Suldane's wife and her daughters came to gather around Yuna, and they covered her with necklaces of jade and rosy quartz beads, and garlands of flowers, and a wreath of tiny white flowers upon her head. They put gold and silver rings on her fingers, and bracelets around her wrists and ankles. Setanta's oldest sister, Emer, was about Yuna's age, and she sat behind her to braid her hair and massage her shoulders. The girls had already dressed Yuna in a lovely green and white dress. She could do nothing to protest this proceeding; they didn't listen and overwhelmed her with encouragement and fawning over her acceptance into the tribe.

Finally they left her alone and sat at their own table nearby to eat. Yuna sat silently by Setanta while he reached across the table in front of her and ate his fill. Suldane looked across the table at Yuna with a contented smile brimming widely across his wizened face. When Yuna noticed she couldn't help but glance at him, and then she immediately looked down. Suldane merely chuckled.

"It's good, Setanta, that you found a girl who doesn't like to eat. She'll still be thin and pretty after the first few children are born." Suldane remarked amusedly. Setanta grinned widely.

"Father, have you heard the rumor, that Al Bhed girls usually have twins? If I'm lucky, I'll get two boys right away." Setanta surmised.

"Indeed, I know the saying. But don't be too eager asking for it… you need a first born son, without a rival. Too many chiefs can tear apart the tribe." Setanta advised him.

"Perhaps a boy and a girl then, if the High One has seen to it. I would be glad with that." Setanta concluded. The guests were laughing and singing then, and they all began to sing a cheerful song together around the table.

 _Glory, Glory his arrival! Glory Glory Almighty!_

 _In his Light and Love, all are one!_

 _Rejoice for the dead in his arms,_

 _Rejoice, they are beyond all harm,_

 _And the living upon whom his light has shone,_

 _The Living God stirs in our blood and bone!_

They repeated this verse enthusiastically for several rounds, and then they began to chant a blessing upon Setanta and Yuna.

 _Long life and health to you,_

 _Glory and mighty sons to you,_

 _Fortune and prosperity to you,_

 _Blessings of the Lord upon you,_

 _May the light of Remphan be upon you!_

They chanted this blessing three times, and then cheered for the two of them. The guests had brought gifts for the two of them, in anticipation of the announcement of their wedding. As the presents were placed upon a table near the entrance to the yurt, Suldane then stood up and raised his cup, giving a toast announcing the wedding.

"Let us drink to my son, Setanta, the mightiest of our warriors! He is my successor, as soon as he is ready, and that time is drawing nigh. But he cannot succeed me until he has produced an heir, and the Lord Almighty has seen to it that a fine and lovely young lass has slipped into his grasp. I have taken guardianship and God-Fatherhood over the girl, Yuna. Tomorrow, I shall give her hand in marriage to my son, Setanta, and they shall be united for life." Suldane proclaimed. The guests all cheered and clapped, and raised their cups to drink with him.

"Is there anyone who would dare to challenge this union?" Suldane asked lastly. He grinned contentedly as he saw that no one stirred, but then suddenly a small, soft voice broke the silence. It was Yuna.

"I would." She said. The yurt remained deathly silent. Suldane looked to her with an amused grin and spoke.

"You can't challenge your own union, darling girl. Whatever is the meaning of this silliness?" He asked her.

"I don't want to marry your son. I can't stay here any longer. I have friends who need my help, and duties I have to fulfill elsewhere." Yuna said to him. Suldane shook his head.

"Not any more, dear Yuna. That was your old life, a cursed life. You're one of us now, bathed in the light of Remphan. Your demons have been cast out. Your so-called pilgrimage is over." Suldane said matter-of-factly. Yuna quaked when she heard him say this. She knew it was true. She couldn't finish her pilgrimage, even if she escaped. The Fayth had been removed from her.

"I have to defeat Sin, and save my friends…" Yuna argued, stammering.

"And how would you do that? By sacrificing yourself, and others? All to fulfill the tenets of a cult of human sacrifice? I will never allow that, Yuna. You're new to our covenant, but you are my Godchild and I will never allow that evil to befall you again. You're under my protection, and the spiritual guidance of Shaman Conchubar. It is pointless to speak of it anyway. You know that you cannot defeat Sin by your cursed methods… you can only give it a new life and new form. Yevon aids the giant demon in its tyranny. No more of that villainy; the world has had enough of it. Our Lord Remphan is the light that shall pierce the darkness of Sin, and expel it from our world."

"And why hasn't he done it, then?" Yuna demanded indignantly.

"The time is nigh. My son Setanta is the one who shall lead the final charge against Sin. All of us believe it. He has all the abilities and shows all the signs of the prophecy. You should feel lucky, that I have decided you can have him for a husband. He may soon be the savior of our world, through the light of Remphan!" Suldane said zealously.

"Setanta the devil-killer!" Someone in the yurt shouted, and it was echoed by everyone else at the feast.

"Indeed, that is what we call him. My son is blessed by the Lord, with the strength to finish the war against Sin. Now then, the two of you shall be happily wed." Suldane concluded. Yuna shook her head frantically.

"I don't want to marry him. I want to leave!" She insisted.

"Why?" Suldane asked her plainly.

"Because I don't know him, and all I know about any of you is that you're coarse and hate-filled, and domineering to your women and girls. The only thing you talk about is war, and the only thing you want me for is to breed more soldiers for you to use for fighting and killing. How could I possibly go along with any of it?" Yuna rebuked him harshly. Suldane had a widening grin on his handsome face while she spoke. He was not the least bit affected by her tirade. As soon as she finished speaking he began to laugh, and then all of the people in the yurt roared with laughter. When they had settled, he began to speak.

"You complain about 'not knowing' him, but that's what your wedding night is for, girl. And as for war, who are you to say anything of our struggles, when your Yevonite devilry has made it necessary? Struggle is part of life, part of the cycle of things which the Lord himself has set in motion, and it existed before Sin, and will remain afterwards. Only fools and cowards complain about conflict. The wise man knows how to manage it properly and conduct it for a worthy purpose. And how dare you denigrate the sacred tradition of motherhood? You think you're too good for us? Nonsense. That Yevonite cult of suicide and human sacrifice has clearly filled your own heart with hatred, and so you see it in others because your vision is clouded by it. Enough of your willfulness, Yuna. You'll obey me, and that's the end of it. Many girls would gladly fight you to claim my boy for themselves. You will appreciate what you've been given." Suldane ordered her.

"They can have him for all I care!" Yuna fumed back at him. Suldane was about to step across the table to strike her, but Setanta stood up first and blocked his path.

"Why don't you tell me the real reason you don't want me. What's his name? If you have some other loverboy you think is better than me, just tell me his name and where I can find him, so that I can go skin the charm right off of him. I could hack him apart and it wouldn't cause me to sweat." Setanta said to her grimly. Yuna knew that he was serious. She said nothing and looked away, quivering in silence. Setanta's blazing eyes were burning into her, and his features projected wrath and fury.

"Conchubar, did you not say that she was innocent of men?" Suldane asked then, indignant. The old sage spoke.

"Indeed, she is pure in body, but her heart may be fluttering about." Conchubar surmised. Suldane and all his guests laughed again. Suldane pushed his son aside and stood towering over Yuna. He grabbed her upper arms with his giant, strong hands and held her firmly.

"Is that right, my child? Did you see a pretty boy somewhere, and now you've made up a pleasant little fairy tale in your head, with him as the charming prince? And so for that petty little fantasy, you want to throw away the future of a clan, a country, a world? Is that really what you think life is about? Enough of this absurdity. The wedding will be held tomorrow, and if need be you'll have a band tied around your mouth. I assure you of this, my child; if you disrespect our sacred marriage rites, you will see me go berserk in a way that you have never witnessed before." Suldane warned her.

After this display, Suldane bid his guests good night and politely escorted them all out of the yurt. His wife and daughter took Yuna to her partitioned space in the yurt, where she had a bed laid out and some extra clothes and effects. The yurt quieted down eventually, and all she heard was the occasional crack of the fireplace and the sounds of sleeping people breathing and shifting. She heard the faint voices of Suldane and Setanta outside, but could not understand anything they said. Finally Suldane returned to the yurt and she heard him getting into his hammock. The night was concluded then.

Yuna laid on her bed spread, knowing that she would not be able to sleep. Now that her magic was gone, she had nothing with which to preoccupy herself. She thought about her plight on the morrow. She wondered how she might escape, and where she might go if she did. She had no idea how to get out of the middle of the rocky Djose region where they had taken her. Even if she left, she could not confront Auron and Lulu and the others, to tell them that she was no longer in communion with the Fayth. Her pilgrimage was effectively over, no matter what happened.

Suddenly she began to wonder why she was so vehemently opposed to her ordeal. Setanta was very beautiful and obviously very brave. His temper was the thing that worried her most. Suldane and Conchubar were both wise and surprisingly gentle, though they felt no need to entertain the delusions of others. Still, she felt that they were all wild and dangerous. As for their strange religion and their belief in Setanta… how could it possibly be true? How could a single man defeat Sin? She felt there was much more to know, and now she was curious. If it could defeat Sin, wasn't she obligated to pursue it? Did this mean she should go with Setanta after all?

Then she thought of Tidus. How could she turn away and forget about him? She knew he would be looking for her with utmost determination. She prayed that he would find her soon, but she almost didn't want her friends to come to her rescue. She was certain that they would never be able to outfight Setanta and his tribe. If Setanta discovered Tidus, he would surely kill him out of spite.

Yuna prayed then, but she felt no comfort from the Fayth. She could not help thinking of Remphan then, and his image was seared into her mind. She could not deny to herself, that she felt an overwhelming peace and comfort, as if she were truly in the presence of a powerful and beneficent being. She felt light, and warm, and unburdened. Her stress melted away. Could it be true? Could this be real? She was astounded, and felt some guilt, but she had to try.

"Lord Remphan, Angel of light, please let me know you and feel your presence. Let me be at peace." She prayed in a low voice, almost a whisper. Suddenly the feeling that there was a spirit in the room became much, much stronger, and Yuna could feel it pulsing through her. She almost felt as though she was glowing with an aura of light. She was at peace then, and she was tired. Yuna soon laid back on her bedding and fell into a deep sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Dark Roads**

Auron led the way back to Operation Mi'ihen's ruined plains. Tidus and Paine were following a few paces behind him.

None of them spoke; Tidus knew that Auron was troubled, and he understood why. Paine was beginning to seem like a very distant and somber person, and he wondered what had happened to her during the operation that was so visibly haunting her, apart from her wound. Still, she seemed determined to carry on with a purpose. Tidus had to know more about her.

"Where are you from?" He asked her. Paine suddenly came back down from her thoughts, and her eyes reflected it. She gazed sidelong at him and then looked back ahead.

"I'm from Bevelle. I grew up on the streets there, until I joined the Crusaders." Paine said.

"You grew up on the streets? So you don't have a family?" Tidus asked. Paine shook her head, affirming that she did not. He continued to question her. "How old are you now?"

"I'm sixteen…" She replied. Tidus did not know what to say then. He thought she was very young to be a soldier already, and a battle-wounded veteran at that. He knew that saying so would likely offend her, however.

"Why did you choose to join?" He asked her. Paine hesitated, and Tidus was afraid that he had made her uncomfortable or impatient with him. "I'm sorry. I know I ask too many questions. It's just that I'm new here, and I can't really remember anything. I just wanted to get to know someone." He said softly. Paine turned a sympathetic gaze to him then.

"It's alright, I understand. But you may not like the answer." She forewarned.

"I'm not here to judge anyone." Tidus assured her. Paine nodded, and spoke.

"I joined because the guards in Bevelle told me to choose between going to prison, or signing up with the Crusaders." She revealed.

"Why would they do that?" He asked.

"I was caught for… actually… I don't think I want to talk about it." Paine said, and she picked up the pace until she was walking beside Auron. Tidus stopped for a moment and stood bewildered, watching her walk away. He was unsure what to think of her; he never would have suspected her of being a criminal. She was obviously very independent and fierce, but somehow she seemed too honest and straightforward to engage in villainy.

Auron led them back up the slopes to where the relief tents were assembled. There were fewer people there now. As they approached, they saw a wagon departing, carrying the wounded back to Luca for better treatment or for bedrest. A few healers, priests and nurses remained and were packing their things to leave with the next carriage. Auron strode up to an older man who wore the blue robes of a healer, and began questioning him.

"Pardon me, have you seen a young girl summoner, with brunette hair and differently colored eyes?" Auron asked him. The wizardly old doctor looked upon him with the light of recognition.

"Sir Auron? It's you, isn't it… and I assume you're speaking of Lord Braska's girl. I'm afraid I haven't seen her. You've lost her during the battle, then?" He asked.

"Yes… we did. She's not at Djose Temple; we already checked there." Auron told him.

"I see… that is troubling. I have no idea where she might have gone. The Djose region is a large and cavernous place… but I don't see why she would have gone into it. Perhaps she went back on the High Road, to the travel agency? Or to Luca?" The doctor suggested.

"There would be no reason for her to do that either. She must be here, or she must have been… _taken_ , somewhere else…" Auron surmised grimly.

"Well she's not here. Our people have scoured the battlefield, picking up the survivors. Unless she's buried under the wreckage, in which case you won't find her, but I doubt that's the case. However, I saw something interesting earlier." The doctor said. Auron's eyebrows lifted inquisitively.

"Do tell…" Auron prompted him.

"I saw Maester Seymour. He was riding on a chocobo, and riding fast. His bodyguards were gone, and I could have sworn he was taking his personal carriage when he came here in the first place. His arm was wounded, and he had one of the healers tend to it for him quickly, before he departed again toward Luca." The old doctor told him. Auron's features became dark and suspicious.

"I wonder what he got himself into… it's very curious indeed." He said, contemplating. "But even if it could help our search to find out, we would still be going a long way from finding Yuna, just to track him down and question him. I'd rather find her straight away."

"Of course, but you may not be able to, Sir Auron. If you don't know where to look, you might as well be searching for a needle in a haystack. There's too much you don't know. Obviously Seymour will know something, and even if he did not see the girl herself, it will likely be related. There may have been rovers or bandits on the road, taking advantage of the wounded crusaders and other travellers." The doctor surmised.

"You're right. We need to find out what he knows." Auron agreed finally.

"I wish you good luck in your search, Sir Auron, though I wish I could be of further use to you. I certainly want the girl to be found, and your search to be safe along the way." The doctor said. Auron gazed at him for a moment then, as if he recognized him.

"Do I know you, old fellow? Somehow you seem familiar now…" Auron asked.

"Maybe you don't remember, but I healed you and your comrades on Lord Braska's pilgrimage, when you passed through Macalania Woods and came limping over the Bevelle Highbridge. My name is Mino." The old healer reminded him. Auron's eye gleamed with the light of recognition then.

"Ahh… now I recall. The woods were thick with fiends that day, and Jecht got the idea that we could push through without Crusader support. He always was stubborn, and independent." Auron said with nostalgia. "Regardless of the circumstances, it's good to see you again, Mino. In case I didn't thank you then, I just want to say 'thank you' now."

"Oh, you did, but you passed out soon after I anesthetized you. I left you under Lord Braska's watch when I was done, in the Crusader outpost in Bevelle." Mino told him.

"Ha! Indeed, now I remember the next morning. It was hard to take that first step out onto the road, in the dark before sunrise, but we had to go of course. Sin had just taken a swipe at Bevelle itself. There was no more time to waste… and we all had to say our goodbyes in a hurry." Auron said, with a somber look in his eye.

"Well, I see that your party is small at present. I'll offer you my services as a healer, if you would have me. I may be old, but I can still take a long walk when it's called for." Mino volunteered.

"We're too desperate at this point to say no." Auron replied with a chuckle. The two old men laughed together, and then Mino packed up his healer's satchel and walked with them as Auron led the way back to the Mi'ihen Highroad. They made it to the travel agency in the middle of the road by nightfall, but Auron didn't want to stop there. They saw the sun sinking into the water, and Tidus walked up to the edge to behold the golden blaze of the sunset behind the ancient gateway protruding out from the sea. Paine saw him split from the group for that moment, and she stepped up beside him.

"Is something up?" She asked him.

"No, I just like the way the sun is setting here. I'm not sure why, but it's very… familiar." Tidus replied. He was quiet then, and suddenly he felt as though he was having an overwhelming episode of Deja Vu. His head became hazy, and for a moment his vision was blurry and he couldn't move. When it cleared again, he looked to his side and saw a pretty young girl, thin and with brown hair, and one blue eye, the other green. She smiled at him, but a hint of sadness glinted from her eyes. For an instant it showed on her features, before she smiled widely at him. Then suddenly she disappeared, and he saw Paine standing beside him. Her face was not tinged with sadness or its typical solemnity, but instead she seemed curious and playful.

"What happened, she asked with a grin. By the look on her face, Tidus knew that he must have appeared bewildered to her in that moment.

"I think I just remembered something." He said.

"Really? What was it?" Paine asked enthusiastically.

"I was here, and I saw a sunset like this one. There was a girl there, watching it." Tidus told her.

"Did you know her?" Paine asked.

"I don't know…" He answered.

"What was she like?" Paine continued.

"She was… sad, I think. But she smiled, to hide it." Tidus said.

"Hmm… that doesn't sound uncommon today. It always gets that way for people in Spira, once the Calm wears off. When the new Calm arrives, everyone will be ecstatic for a few years. Then the anxiety starts to sink in." Paine explained to him.

"Really?" Tidus asked, feeling appalled by the notion of such a dismal world.

"I've only lived to see it once, so far. My parents both died in the last war against Sin. I grew up in the Calm, as far back as I can remember clearly. When I was still very young there was total chaos, we were always on the move, and life was hard. It got better suddenly, at least for everyone else around me, but my family was gone. Then, as I grew older I saw things getting worse for everyone else too." Paine recalled bleakly. Strangely, she was still smiling when she looked at him.

"Let's keep moving." Auron called to them from a few paces away. He had turned back to collect them. Mino was waiting further ahead on the darkening road. Auron turned and strode away, and Tidus and Paine looked at each other once more, sharing a warm grin. Then they strode onward through the nightfall and under the stars until they reached the steps of Luca. They went down into the market, finding all of the shops closed and the purveyors gone away. Luca was still a sleeping city for now; it had not yet grown so massive and buzzing as Bevelle. At night the city darkened, except for a few street lights, and most people went off home to bed.

"Is anyone else feeling exhausted all of a sudden?" Tidus asked as he stumbled along.

"Well, I didn't want to be the first to say anything, on account of my age, but it's been a long day after all. I had to clean up a lot of patients earlier, too." Mino replied. Auron stopped and glared at them both.

"Are you feeling it too then?" He asked Paine. She nodded silently. "Fine then. We'll take a rest, but I'm going to look for information." Auron told them.

"Who would be willing to talk with us this late at night?" Mino asked skeptically.

"There's one place in this city that sleeps by day and opens by night. Just keep close to each other and mind your own business, it's not frequented by friendly types." Auron told him gruffly.

"Well thanks for the warning, Sir…" Mino said, a bit indignant.

They followed Auron as he led them to a tavern on the east side of the city, tucked away in a little corner by the docks. The spray of the sea misted the dimly lantern-lit doorway, and a sign with a menacing octopus hung over the door. The tavern was called _Wrecker's Relief_. They could hear the noise of the tavern faintly through the thick, tightly shut door. Auron pounded on the door with his fist, and after a few loud heavy thuds, the sliding hatch sitting at about eye level was opened, and a pair of bloodshot blue eyes gazed out at him and peered over his companions.

"Who are ye, and what do ye want?" A raspy voice asked him.

"I'm Auron, and I want a drink. My friends want some beer and some soup." Auron answered him plainly. The hatch shut abruptly, and then the sound of unlocking bolds and clinking chains could be heard, until the door finally swung open to reveal a dank and dimly lit atmosphere, thick with the smell of smoke, cooking seafood, and rice beer. A whole assortment of sailors and rough customers abided within. Auron boldly stepped inside, and turned back to motion for them all to follow. Paine stepped in quickly, and Tidus and Mino followed after her. The door shut behind them, and everyone in the tavern eyed them for a while, until Auron took them to sit in a booth along the wall. A scantily clad and heavily tattooed girl came to their booth to ask for their orders.

"Give them all some soup, fish and beer." Auron said as he handed her a stack of gil. She took the payment with a nod, and went to retrieve the meal for them. Auron left the booth then and went to the bar. He sat talking with the bartender for a long while, and took a few shots of whiskey. Then the bartender directed him to a rough and scarred man sitting in the corner booth of the wall opposite to Auron's companions. Auron went to sit with this strange man. Tidus was watching, until the girl came back with their food, and as soon as she set it down before him he delved into it. Fortunately the soup was just the right temperature, or he surely would have scalded himself.

"You eat so fast. It'll be gone soon, and you'll have hardly noticed that you ate anything at all. How can you be lean, when you trick your stomach so?" Mino said to him with a sagely grin.

"I haven't eaten all day, old man, give me a break." Tidus replied.

"Do you even remember the last time you ate?" Paine asked him. Tidus paused for a few seconds.

"Nope. Still nothing." He said.

"You don't remember anything at all?" She asked in surprise.

"I remember home, and Sin wrecking it, and then Auron bringing me here. That's about all." Tidus said.

"And the girl…" Paine reminded him.

"Yeah… that too. I have no idea who she was though. I would ask Auron, if maybe she was Yuna." Tidus supposed.

"Lord Braska's girl would be hard to forget, I should think. Many young men were saddened to hear that she chose the summoner's path. I can't fault them for ruing such a tragic loss." Mino said with a sigh.

"Why? Are summoners not allowed to marry?" Tidus asked. Both Paine and Mino grinned faintly, but with an air of dark humor.

"Something like that." Mino replied shortly.

"Do you have a wife, Mino?" Paine asked him, changing the subject.

"Oh yes, I do. She lives in Bevelle. I've been married for thirty years now… we got married in the beginning of the first Calm that we saw as teenagers. She and I have an arrangement… during the Calm I belong to her, and during the Sin wars, I belong to the people of Spira. A healer has obligations, after all." He said.

"Thirty years… that's impressive. That's almost twice as long as I've been alive. How can two people get along so well for so many years?" She asked.

"We started young, and grew together. We were both open-hearted and honest with each other. We both wanted to share the Calm with someone we could truly love, and weather the storms with someone we could trust. That's all the advice I can give." Mino said. Paine was gazing across the table at Tidus. When he looked to her, she seemed to glow with liveliness. He became self-conscious then, but before he could think to do anything, Auron returned and pounded his whiskey jug onto the table.

"My new acquaintance here, Captain Kern, has told me that Seymour came to the docks earlier today and demanded that a Yevon-owned vessel take him back to Bevelle immediately. The crew scrambled for departure, and they left shortly after he arrived." Auron informed them.

"So what do we do now? Go to Bevelle?" Tidus asked.

"That's likely our only choice. We need to find out what he knows. Otherwise we're not likely to find Lady Yuna." Mino advised.

"That's what I thought. So I hired good old Kern, to take us there. It cost all the gil I had, so you better finish your meals; you might not get another one for a while. We'll be leaving in a few hours. Until then, we'll sleep in the crew bay on his ship." Auron told them. As he spoke, the haggard looking Captain Kern stepped up beside him and looked over all of his companions. Kern was a lean, muscular man, about Auron's age and the same height. He was a blonde-haired Al-Bhed, with round black goggles over his eyes and a sleeveless gray jumpsuit over his wiry, muscled body. He wore tall black boots and a glove on his right hand. His left hand was missing, and a machina claw was in its place. His left arm was tattooed in black, depicting a spearhead with the tentacles of a giant squid wrapped around it. His right arm was covered with a tattoo of a crescent shaped ship on a whirling wave, and a giant squid coming up beneath it with tentacles coiling around it. A few scars lined his roughly shaven face, his neck, and his forearms. He was such an incredibly brutish man, the likes of which Tidus had never seen before. He spoke tersely and in a dry voice, with an Al-Bhed accent.

"I can take you to my ship now. You rest there, soon we will go." He said, and he started for the door, beckoning for them to follow with a wave of his hand. Auron followed after him in a slow, drunken gait, but the others were so shocked and appalled that they hesitated for a moment. Finally Tidus recovered his wits and hastily took a few more spoonfuls of soup, and quaffed his beer with one gulp. It was sour, compared to the drinks of his native Zanarkand, but he had no time to complain. Mino and Paine were already at the door and about to step out. He rushed after them, and they followed Auron and Kern to his vessel, called _The Brazen Spear_.

They were shown to their bunks in a large bay under the deck. They were allowed to use the wash room, but apart from that there was no privacy in the bay for any of them. Tidus sat down on his bunk across from Auron, while Paine went to use the wash room and Mino fell asleep immediately.

"Auron, tell me about Yuna. What did she look like?" He asked.

"She's young, thin… doesn't seem to eat enough. She has light brown hair, it's straight and comely… and she has an innocent face. Her right eye is green, and her left is blue. She's pale, and pretty." Auron said, and clearly he was deep in his recollection. He seemed like a father then, or what a father should be like. It was as if his own daughter was missing. He was warmer now than Tidus had ever seen him. Suddenly he became grim again. "If we don't find her, I'm not sure what we can do. Sin has to be stopped, and quickly. It won't be long… before it starts attacking Luca and Bevelle. With all the Crusaders lost at Operation Mi'ihen, the armies won't be able to turn Sin back if it comes to the cities. We need to find Yuna, and if we can't… we'll have to find another summoner and start over again. We'll have to go fast; unbelievably fast." Auron surmised gloomily.

"We'll find her, Auron. You know Spira, after all. We've only been separated from her for a day…" Tidus reasoned, trying to encourage him. Auron shook his head.

"No… much of Spira is isolated or remote, with extreme terrain, and there are a lot of bandits and wild people hidden in the folds and fringes of the world. Sin creates perpetual chaos, prevents discovery and exploration, causes tribalism and seclusion, prevents the people from coming together. We know little of the world, actually." he admitted.

"You're painting a bleak picture for me here, Old Man. Why did you bring me to Spira? Why should we care about this world?" Tidus asked pointedly, unable to keep his frustration pent up any longer.

"You don't have to care, boy. You're here, and you can't leave. I can't leave, until my work is done. Now get some sleep. The trip to Bevelle will take a couple days, maybe three. Get plenty of sleep now, because there's no guarantee we'll get it once we arrive there." Auron said, and he laid back onto his bunk and closed his eye.

"Great. I'll just let old dogs lie then. You probably need the rest." Tidus said scornfully. He punched the wall, and then laid on his own bunk and stared at the ceiling. He didn't think he would sleep, but he actually couldn't resist it. He didn't remember, but he had gotten very little rest over the past few days. Even from what he had seen that day, Spira was an exhausting place for outsiders.

In the Red Blade camp the next day, drums were beating rapidly and brass horns called loudly over the rocks, canyons and valleys of the wilderness of Djose. The drums were pounded and horns blasted in order to ward away fiends, foul spirits and unwelcome ghosts. Once the shaman and elders were satisfied that it was so, the drums and horns ceased and the musicians began to play finer instruments; the lute, the harp, the flute and softer drums. The young women and girls danced with the men, and they sang songs of joy together. They were beginning the procession of the wedding ceremony between Setanta and Yuna.

Conchubar was preparing an altar before which they would be vowed and wedded. A figurine of Remphan made of gold and covered with jewels, about half as tall as a man, was sitting atop the altar. Braziers were smoking with incense, and a bowl of holy water sat on the altar before the figurine. The altar was covered in a black cloth, and two cords interwoven, red and green, encircled the figurine and the items upon the altar. Little girls and boys brought flowers and colored seashells to lay upon the altar as offerings.

Inside the chieftain's yurt, Suldane's women were getting Yuna ready for the ceremony. They dressed her in a splendid white gown and put a necklace of silver beads and talismans around her neck. Suldane's oldest daughter, Emer, was braiding Yuna's hair once everyone else was done with her makeup and jewelry. She made intricate braids and then bound them together in a round bun atop Yuna's head, and then placed a silver tiara upon her crown. Upon this she placed a thin, transparent white veil. She looked at Yuna proudly, seeing how well her work had turned out. Yuna looked almost angelic.

"You do look beautiful. You'll be a very lovely wife and mother." Emer said, as if to comfort her.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Yuna asked, beginning to cry.

"No, don't smudge your makeup, Honey. What's wrong?" Emer asked, placing her hands on Yuna's shoulders.

"I don't want to marry him." Yuna said.

"I know this won't make you feel much better, but… I'm glad you're here. I don't have any real friends in the tribe. Most of the girls our age have already gotten married, and they have their own families to take care of, but my father says that he is waiting for someone to prove worthy of having me before he'll allow me to marry. Now that you're here, I'll have a sister my own age to talk with." Emer said with a smile. Yuna looked at her in bewilderment.

"You don't understand; I was a summoner. I had a mission to defeat Sin, and bring the Calm for everyone else in Spira. By keeping me here you've taken that away from them all!" Yuna exclaimed. Emer gave her a solemn look, and finally shrugged in indifference.

"You can't put an end to Sin by following Yevon. How many times have brave people in the past sacrificed themselves, and yet Sin is still here. It comes back every time. Yevon has defeated Sin over a hundred times now, and it still comes back. Do you really think that one more victory will be the end of it?" Emer asked her plainly.

"That's not the point… there are people suffering, and if Sin is not defeated then they will continue suffering." Yuna argued bitterly.

"They suffer because they are impure at heart. They allow grief to overcome them and they take no joy in life, apart from pointless diversions. Even the original teachings of Yevon have said that humans must atone and lead a simpler life, to be free from Sin. My people have lived on the land for over a century now, and kept our Lord's covenant. We have not been troubled by Sin in all that time. The city folk live degenerate lives and allow the corruption of Yevon to rule them. Because of Yevon, Sin is always reborn. Clearly their teachings and methods are false." Emer said. Yuna shook her head.

"I won't give up! If we defeat Sin and humanity atones, it might not come back again. It's worth it, for a chance that we can be freed. It's worth it, for the people to have a few years of peace!" Yuna declared frantically. Emer merely looked upon her pitifully.

"I know you still believe that, but for us in the tribes it is not so. We know that our Lord Remphan will soon put an end to Sin, and he will use my brother as his champion. My father wants grandchildren soon, before the Lord provides his sign and my brother has to leave on the Final Crusade. So you see, it was fate that Setanta found you when he did. Now the line of the Red Blade Tribe can continue, and we can fight for the Lord and defeat the corruption of Yevon. And I know that you think you won't like Setanta, but he may only be with us for a short while longer. He will win the war ultimately, but the prophecy does not tell if he will survive or not. You should appreciate him while you have him; Setanta is blunt with words, and brave in battle, but he has always been gentle with his own family and people. He has never taken advantage of a girl, or treated women unkindly." Emer assured her sincerely.

"How can you say that to me? So now I'm supposed to love a man I don't know, and lose him anyway?" Yuna cried.

"You were ready to die for a lie. Why is it so hard to live for love?" Emer asked her. Yuna looked away and said nothing. Emer continued after a moment. "Well, either way it's not up to us. We have to go out now; the ceremony is beginning."

Emer led Yuna out of the yurt then, and she saw all of the people of the village lined up on either side of the entrance to the chieftain's yurt. They all looked at her with smiles and good cheer. The girls of the tribe were wearing halos and garlands of flowers, and they stepped beside Yuna and Emer carrying baskets of rose petals to toss in front of her path. Suldane came striding down the pathway then, and he was clad in fine red robes. When he saw Yuna's tear smudged face he became stern. She could tell that he was not to be angered at this moment. Yuna looked down and said nothing. Suldane took her hand, and led her slowly down the rose-littered pathway to the altar. Conchubar was there, along with two other elder sages in black robes. They stood beside the altar while he stood waiting in front of it. Suldane took Yuna up to the altar and stood with her beside Conchubar.

They only had to wait for a moment before Setanta came out of the crowd at the start of the path and began walking down it. Boys and girls followed him, offering berries and fruit to the congregation as they passed. A young boy was riding atop his black lupine, and led the creature into the crowd for the ceremony. One of the little girls stumbled in front of him, and Setanta picked her up and carried her on his shoulder. All of the people laughed and greeted him happily. He was dressed in a white tunic with a necklace of silver chain and a talisman hanging on it. He wore dark, burnished red trousers and his black leather boots had been shined thoroughly. Yuna looked away from him. He was incredibly handsome and affable, and it made it difficult for her to reject him. When Setanta arrived before the altar he put the child down and stood facing Yuna. Conchubar then began the invocation.

"Our Lord Remphan, whose age of light is eminent, look down upon us with warmth and kindness on this day. We dedicate all to you. For time immemorial, you have looked down upon the creation, and guided the people in your own good time. When you revealed yourself and bestowed the teachings and prophecies upon our sages, the world was given a path toward enlightenment. When your sages found a tribe of people willing to do your bidding and enter your covenant, then you showed us that the age of Sin would soon be over. Now the hundredth year of the pact we made with you is here, and as you promised us, a young champion has arisen to follow your light. And we give him in marriage, not easily, but not grudgingly, to our newest and most beautiful daughter, whom you yourself have cleansed before us.

"We offer this wedding to you as well, for it was you who taught us the nature of love and a life devoted to love in your covenant. You have taught us to be transcendent in our perspective, to be dutiful in life, to be brave in the face of hardship and struggle, and to be kind in relation to our community. You have taught us the value of love, to be selfless and long-suffering, to seek the truth and to live in good faith with each other, to endure difficulty, with patience and good will. You have told us that it is for a man to protect his wife and provide for her needs, to devote himself to her, and keep her company with compassion and affection.

"It was you who taught us that it is for a woman to be devoted to her husband, to respect and honor him, to obey him in good faith to the covenant with you, to help and to heal him, to care for his children, and to love him in fidelity and good conscience, to submit in union with him, forsaking all others. It is for the wife to cherish her husband with sweetness and consideration, and to look to his virtues, and strengthen them, to look compassionately upon his faults, and help to diminish them. This is your lesson on love and marriage, that it must be devoted to the tribe, the folk, the covenant and ultimately to you above all else. Sharing our love in your covenant has healed afflictions, and made the heart whole and complete, invulnerable to harm, for so many of our congregation. You have strengthened the bonds of love and matrimony, and so we place our full faith and confidence in you.

"We ask for your presence Lord, and your divine blessing upon this union, and that you will ease the hardships and lighten the burdens upon these two young people, who have witnessed your power and believed in you. We ask that you enliven their hearts with love, and fill their speech with softness, that you fill their life together with sweetness and affection, and that you protect them from all enemies and banish wicked urges from them; render them pure in your love and true to the covenant. This we pray, our Lord Remphan, that your light may shine upon us all…" Conchubar said auspiciously and with sincerity.

While he spoke, Yuna began to see a glowing light radiating from the figurine upon the altar. She felt a strange power pulsating from it, and through her. Behind the altar in the northern skies, above the red peaks and between the parting white clouds, suddenly a blue star appeared shining brightly in sky. All of the people made quiet mutterings and cries of amazement. The sages beside the altar turned and gasped in wonderment. From the star a beam of blue light shot upon the figurine and it turned into a solid cluster of sparkling diamonds, still in the shape of the Archangel Remphan. They saw a pair of angels gliding upon the beam, down from the sky and into their midst. They gracefully floated on white wings down to the ground behind the altar, and behind them came a third angel, the avatar of the Lord Remphan himself. A tall golden throne materialized before the altar then, and everyone stepped away from the area around the altar. The back of the throne was shaped like a tree with its branches and oak leaf clusters beautifully and perfectly formed of gold. At the top of the throne was a gleaming crystal star, six-pointed and shimmering with blue light, like the star of Remphan himself. The Archangel floated down from the beam of starlight, and he sat upon his throne before them. He was holding a golden scepter in one hand, and a sword of blue steel in the other.

Remphan's black robes were like sable, and his hair glowed like fiery gold. His blue eyes shone like stars, and a halo of white light spun above his head. This throne did not touch the ground, but hovered a foot above the earth. The sages all bowed before him, and all the people along with them. Suldane pulled Yuna down beside him and they all knelt low to the ground before their celestial Lord.

"Lord Remphan! Your name is glory!" Conchubar said, but he kept his head low to the ground. In a powerful voice with an echoing, inhuman tone, the Archangel spoke.

"Setanta, son of Suldane, rise and approach the foot of my throne." Remphan commanded. Setanta quickly did as he was asked, but he kept his eyes lowered at the Lord's feet.

"I am ready to do your bidding, Lord." Setanta said to him, with a solemn and steady voice.

"I have heard your heartsent prayers. I have seen your exploits, and observed your devotions, your ablutions and abstentions. I have witnessed your courage, and the many victories you have won. I have chosen you for my champion in the Final Crusade against Sin. Because your people have kept the covenant with me and obeyed my wishes, I have seen to it that you shall find victory against all your foes. For each of you who falls in battle, a hundred of your enemies shall be slain. For each of your allies who falls, ten of your enemies shall perish. All men who die in this Crusade shall be spirited into my realm, and enjoy my reward for a thousand years. All enemies who fight against you shall be damned to a thousand reincarnations as fiends. For those of you who survive the war, my blessing will be upon your lineage for ten generations. I shall see the line of Suldane replenished, and blessed for a hundred generations.

"Setanta, I order you first to conquer Bevelle, and wash away the corruption of the Yevonite maesters in blood. You are to restore my covenant with the people of Spira, and make my teachings known to them. You shall see to it that a temple is built for me in Bevelle, and secured for my followers. Then you shall face Sin in combat, and defeat it once and for all. So long as my temple is maintained and my followers remain faithful, Sin shall not be permitted to return again. Wait for my sign, and then you must depart with your forces and assault the Yevonites. Your wife also, must go with you. You must depart at the end of the lunar cycle, when you shall see the moon not darkened, but instead it shall be illuminated by my star. This is the sign, and on that night you must depart without delay." Remphan ordered him.

"I shall do as you command, my Lord." Setanta answered willingly.

"Then receive these tokens of my favor, and take them as a sign to the other tribes and peoples of Spira. Gather those who would join you in the Crusade, and when the sign appears you shall lead them into righteous battle. All who resist you are to be put to the sword in my name. Those who surrender may be spared only if they pledge to accept my temple and show peace to my followers." Remphan commanded, and then his angels stepped toward Setanta, and one of them placed a bright cerulean crown upon his brow, and the other gave him a red-bladed sword forged in a star's flames. Setanta bowed before the Lord then, and Remphan and his angels departed, gliding back up the beam and into his star. Once they had left, the throne fell to the ground and stood before the diamond figurine upon the altar.

"Praise the Lord! Our victory is at hand!" Suldane cried as he rose to his feet. All of the people stood up and cheered thunderously. Conchubar stood up and took two rings from the altar, with heart-shaped carnelian gems set in them, and he placed one upon Yuna's finger, the other upon Setanta's.

"Our Lord has personally overseen this union. You are now one in his eyes. Setanta, you may take your bride into your own yurt." Conchubar pronounced. Setanta smiled and took hold of Yuna then, and he lifted her up into his arms with ease. All of his comrades cheered then, as he carried her off to his yurt on the western edge of the camp. Yuna was too starstruck to resist him. The crown glimmering upon his head was like a halo, and under it his countenance appeared as that of an angel. Her resentment of him had vanished, and a powerfully compelling affection had arisen in its place. She rested gladly in his strong arms.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Rising Storm**

On the rocky ranges of Djose, a lone blue figure was striding down from the hills of red stone and dust. His blue hide contrasted sharply with his surroundings, and this made him an easy target to spot, even as clever and stealthy as he otherwise might have been. A wound on his left leg was stinging him; it was the bite of a wild Dingo he had received a few hours earlier while trying to climb over the terrain in his search for Yuna. He was Kimahri Ronso.

He had been roaming across the region for a few days now, yet he found no traces of the young lady summoner. He did however run afoul of a few teams of bandits, and some tribal raiders whom he did not recognize. He was able to defeat them and drive them off, but an arrow had shot through the skin on his upper arm, tearing it quite tortuously. He was now heading back down to Djose Temple for healing. He knew that his wounds would not permit him to carry on much longer, and if he collapsed in the wilderness it would spell his doom.

Kimahri reached the road and descended upon it, then crossed the bridges and came to the travel agency in front of the temple. The relief tents that had been there a few days ago when he began his search were now gone. He went into the temple itself and called for aid. A priest of Yevon tended to him then, healed and bandaged his wounds. Kimahri limped out of the temple and went back to the bridge. He stood there by the side and leaned over, looking down into the clear waters with a clouded mind. He had never been separated from Yuna in the past ten years, since Auron charged him with her protection. His anxiety was maddening. As he slumped there, sulking, he heard footsteps approaching behind him. They were soft footsteps; not those of a human, for they were quieter and yet carrying more weight. He looked over his shoulder and saw the tall, lean and lithe figure of a Ronso woman striding toward him.

"I see that the world has treated my brother badly, and he is weary so far away from home. Have the chilled winds not called you back to our mountain, Kimahri?" She asked, with a thick and sensuous voice. He knew her; he had grown up with her when they were both cubs. She had a contented smile upon her face that showed her fangs, and her sharp golden yellow eyes were glowing. She was clad in a red tunic that draped over her torso, with blue leather bracers on her forearms and blue leather greaves on her shins. Her hide was light blue, almost white, and her hair was long and snowy white; it flowed loose down behind her shoulders and fell at waist-length, along with a single thick braid from the back of her head. She had a supple yet powerful form. Kimahri was gladdened, but also self-conscious in seeing her now.

"I am on mission. I cannot go back, sister Neela. I must do what I can for the world that treats me cruelly." Kimarhi replied grimly.

"No time for self pity then. What mission is it, brother of mine?" She asked as she leaned over the bridge beside him.

"I have lost Yuna, Lord Braska's daughter. I have been her guardian for ten years, and on her pilgrimage I have failed her. I must find her." Kimahri said.

"Where have you looked, brother?" Neela asked him.

"In Djose, and Mi'ihen, where she was lost. I cannot find her trail, and the way is harsh. It is too much for me alone. The fiends and bandits outnumber me." Kimahri lamented openly. Neela's expression was tinged with sympathy. She thought for a moment and then spoke.

"Has my brother checked the Moonflow yet?" She asked.

"No… she could not be there. She would not go on, without the Fayth from Djose." He said with certainty.

"How can you be sure, brother? And why would she be elsewhere?" Neela asked.

"She must have been taken." Kimahri supposed.

"Even if it is so, you know not where. One may see many things on the waters of the Moonflow. The spirits speak there. When I walked there, I was told to come to Djose. Perhaps if you go there, you will find where to go next." Neela suggested to him gently. Kimahri gazed upon her and saw that there was no lie in her, only a noble will. He nodded in agreement then.

"Let us go there quickly, my sister." He said, and then they stood up together and started down the bridge to the fork in the road, where they turned toward the Moonflow. They went on along the road through the lush and green jungle before the shores of the great river. When they arrived on the sandy paths running along the Moonflow they could see the whirling pyreflies weaving about, and the clear waters glistened while the moon slowly drifted above and shone palely upon the river in the late afternoon light.

The two Ronso warriors walked together by the shimmering waters until they came upon a secluded, marshy glade. Kimarhi watched the pyreflies; they were especially thick in this glade. They mingled together over the shallows, and their reflections colored the waters, distorted them, and created mirages. In the water he saw a vision then. He saw Yuna, in great despair and hysteria, yelling at a young man who stood before her, gazing dejectedly upon her. He saw her turn red in the fluctuating colors of the pyreflies, and then blue. She began weeping, and soon she was sobbing. The young man turned and walked away from her. They were in a valley in the Djose region. The vision dissipated, and Kimahri looked up into the distance.

"What did you see?" Neela asked him.

"I saw her. She is unhappy. She's with someone, and they are in Djose. They were in a valley under rocky mountains. A small river was nearby." He told her.

"So you now have something to look for." She said contentedly.

"Indeed… but I have little idea where I might find it… perhaps I could recognize the peaks around the valley, but it will be a difficult fight for me through the hills to reach it. When I reach the valley, I may be alone against many." Kimahri said fatalistically.

"You now have me with you. My spiked club will batter your enemies." Neela assured him confidently.

"You would go with me? Even though we may not return?" Kimahri asked her, perplexed by her willingness.

"We Ronso live our lives for duty, and our duty is to ensure the protection of pilgrimages that bring the Calm. I can live for that or die for it, and not think myself cheated either way. Besides, we Ronso must stick together. We should never abandon a brother in need." She said firmly.

"Thank you, sister. You are a great woman among our people." Kimahri praised her with great laudation.

The two of them left the glade then and began walking back on the road to Djose. As they were walking along the water, they suddenly saw someone running toward them. It was a small, blonde-haired young girl. She was an Al-Bhed girl. She waved at them excitedly, and then continued running to meet them. She was clothed in a red and tan jumpsuit, but she had removed her mask and goggles. A large assault weapon was slung across her back. When she reached them she called out to Kimahri.

"What are you doing here without Yuna? Where did she go?" She asked of him immediately. Kimahri did not think he recognized her.

"Who are you, girl?" He asked.

"My name is Rikku. I'm Yuna's cousin from Bikanel Island. I've been trying to find her for weeks now, ever since I heard that she began the pilgrimage. I saw you with her in Luca. You're Kimahri, aren't you?" She said, still projecting a tone of urgency.

"I am Kimahri, Yuna's guardian. You are Cid's daughter then, aren't you?" Kimahri presumed.

"That's right. You were supposed to be keeping her safe, Kimahri. You let her become a summoner, and now you don't know where she is, do you?" Rikku demanded unabashedly.

"We were all separated at Operation Mi'ihen. It was a mistake… we should not have gone there at all. Now Yuna has been taken into the mountains, and I must rescue her." Kimahri admitted. Rikku gave out an irritated sigh.

"Well you're not going without me. If you can't be trusted to keep her safe, then I'm not going to trust you with rescuing her. Do you even know where she is?" Rikku continued hastily.

"I'll know when I see it." Kimahri replied.

"So in other words, you need my advanced machina mapping technology and scanning devices." Rikku said impatiently.

"We could always use more help, and more firepower." Neela reasoned aloud.

"Very well. Come with us, as long as you can keep up. Yuna is in despair, and she may not be safe where she is being kept." Kimahri surmised.

"Fine, let's go, and not waste any time." Rikku concluded hurriedly, and she began striding energetically down the road toward Djose.

"The Al-Bhed girl is brave, but impatient." Neela remarked.

"We cannot refuse her. We need help, but also she is family. I cannot stop her from searching for her kin." Kimahri decided. Neela nodded in agreement.

"Let us go with her then, and may the Fayth protect us." She said.

The three of them set out for Djose together, determined to find Yuna and return her to safety and freedom.

The seas between Luca and Bevelle were relatively calm during the voyage of _The Brazen Spear_ with Auron and his companions aboard. They slept for hours the first day, but on the second day they began roaming above deck and through the ship, looking for something to occupy their interest. Came out upon the deck the second day, and saw Captain Kern at the helm. He would normally have avoided the man, but in his boredom he walked up the steps and stood beside the rudder wheel, observing the world-worn old ship master. Kern looked upon him then with a curious expression.

"You want something boy?" He asked bluntly.

"No, nothing really. I'm just looking around. I'm wondering, how you got all of your scars." Tidus inquired cautiously.

"The story is written here, plain for everyone to see." Kern replied, pointing to his arms and flexing his big muscles. The squid tattoos wriggled as he did so, and for that instant it was as if they came alive.

"Really? There are giant squids out here!?" Tidus exclaimed in shock.

"No boy! Not here. They dwell in the cold waters of the north, in seas that most men have never sailed. The southern people of Spira know almost nothing of the waters and isles in the north. But I have gone whaling there, and I once lost a ship and many brave men. The narwhals in the north are big, bigger than this boat, and they have horns as long as a ship mast. Big gray whales live there too, giant and full of fat, a great source of oil. A thunderclap from their tailfins is enough to cause a tsunami. Apart from Sin, they only fear one thing, and that's the giant fiend-squids of the northern waters." Kern told him, with a grim look on his features. The black lenses of his goggles almost couldn't hide the seriousness that was surely in his eyes.

"So what about the southern waters? What's the most dangerous thing out here?" Tidus asked anxiously.

"Sin, obviously. But he's rarely around unless you make a lot of commotion. The sharks in the western ocean can get big enough to be a problem for small fishing vessels, but not for my ship. They usually aren't interested anyway. The most dangerous thing in the south would likely be typhoons or squalls. They can capsize a ship in one wave." Kern forewarned. Just then Mino strode up onto the upper deck to join them.

"Well then, let's pray to Yevon that we find good weather on the open seas, and may the saints preserve us." The old healer said.

"We'll be passing through the straits of Bevelle Bay by some time this evening. From there we'll be safe from storms, unless the unexpected happens." Kern told them. The captain set his wheel in place then and walked away toward his cabin. Auron was sitting by the side rail on the upper deck, and Tidus walked over to speak with him.

"What did he mean by 'the unexpected' happening?" Tidus asked.

"He means Sin, most likely. Unless of course he was worried about pirates. They're not uncommon on the open ocean." Auron said.

"Yet another problem this world has to offer." Tidus remarked aloud. "So who exactly is this Seymour guy that we're after? What makes you think he knows anything about Yuna?" Tidus asked.

"He's one of the maesters of Yevon. He was there at Operation Mi'ihen. If you were able to remember the way he looked at Yuna, then you'd know why I'm suspicious of him. He always was a creep, in my estimation." Auron answered.

"What will we do when we find him?" Tidus asked.

"If I find out that he did anything to Yuna, I'll kill him. If not, then we'll get back to the search, of course." Auron answered gruffly. Tidus merely nodded, and left Auron alone.

Tidus walked toward the bow of the ship then, and he saw Paine there leaning over the guardrail. He went to join her.

"How are you doing?" He asked her.

"I'm alright." She answered.

"What's Bevelle like?"

"It's the biggest city in Spira… it's majestic from a distance. There are good parts and bad parts of course." Paine said.

"Really…" Tidus said, unsure of how to proceed. She seemed unwilling to talk about it.

"To be honest, I'm not looking forward to going back." Paine volunteered after a moment of silence.

"Because of what happened, when you were drafted into the Crusaders?" Tidus asked.

"Yeah, there's that. It probably won't be an issue, but if we run into the wrong people, there will be trouble." Paine said.

"I know you didn't want to talk about it with me, but don't you think you should at least tell Auron?" Tidus urged her. Paine sighed deeply. "I'm not trying to tell you what to do…"

"No, you're right. It's only fair that I should tell everyone. If you're seen with me, you might be in danger too." Paine conceded.

"Really… so what happened?" Tidus asked.

"I was raised in the bad parts of Bevelle; in the back alleys and lower levels of the city. In Bevelle, there's a class system. The streets are for the common people, the upper city is for the rich and the well-connected, but the alleys and under-city is for the poor, the criminals, and the orphans. That was where I grew up after my parents died. Since they were Crusaders, the Yevon orphanages took me in, but I hated it there. I was always fighting with other kids and getting bullied, so I ran away and lived in the alleys. I joined a gang and started doing some really horrible things. We called ourselves 'Sin's Spawn', and we did everything we could to break the laws and morality of society. We fought, we stole, we cheated and lied, and eventually we killed people…" Paine revealed dimly. Tidus gasped in shock.

"You killed someone?" He asked.

"I wasn't the one who pulled the trigger… but I helped corner them, yes. It was going to be just another burglary, but one of the girls took it too far. That was what finally got me caught, and the court gave me the option of going to prison for life, or joining the Crusaders for life. I chose to join, obviously." She said.

"What will happen if they see you in Bevelle again?" Tidus asked.

"It depends. If someone from my old gang sees me, they might want to take revenge on me for joining the Crusaders. They hated everything to do with Yevon and anything resembling law and order. If someone in Yevon recognizes me, they may have me arrested and tried for desertion. I'll definitely be executed at that point." She surmised in a bleak tone.

"Then why did you agree to come with us?" Tidus asked, bewildered. Paine hesitated and looked across the water with a doomed expression.

"I've lived my whole life the wrong way. I've got no chance of having a normal life or a family. The only thing I can do is atone for my past, by trying to help someone and do something worthy. If I'm killed along the way, it doesn't matter. I don't have a life anyway." Paine said. Tidus was torn. He instinctively wanted to comfort her, but he wondered if he should, knowing what she had done. Could she be changed? Could she be redeemed? Finally he spoke.

"Alright. If you want to make a difference, I'll help you. I'll speak up for you, if the time comes to face the law." Tidus said determinedly.

"Why? I'm not a good person, Tidus. I'm not worth risking anything over." She admitted.

"Hey… there's always hope as long as we're alive. Some will say that people can't change, but I don't believe that. If your heart wants to make amends, you can do it. I'll help if I can." Tidus assured her.

"Thank you." Paine said, and the look of gratitude in her face and her eyes was genuine.

"You're welcome." Tidus said, with all his sincerity. They stood together in an intimate silence for that moment, until Auron came striding toward them.

"The captain wants us under deck. Evening will be here soon and his crew needs to work to set things up for the nighttime gales. We should be resting now anyway." He told them. They both nodded silently, and walked together under the deck to the bay where they slept the night before. They fell onto their bunks and passed out, almost at once.

Tidus had strange and frightful dreams that night. He found himself upon the deck of the ship, looking out over a black sea. He thought he saw his father standing on the water, shrouded by the cool mists. He woke abruptly, and to a violent jerk. He rolled off of his bunk and onto the floor. He realized it wasn't him that had rolled, when Paine came falling over on top of him. They were face to face then, and he felt her breath upon him.

"Are you alright?" He asked her instinctively.

"Yeah, I'm fine. What just happened?" Paine asked between heavy breaths.

"We must be in a storm!" Tidus exclaimed.

"It's not an ordinary storm…" Auron said, from a few paces away from them. He got up under the shifting lantern light, and hurried up the steps to the deck. Mino got up and went after him. Tidus and Paine both got onto their feet cautiously, and went up the steps and onto the deck. Another wave rocked the ship, but they got on their feet afterwards and gazed over the port side. They saw the lights of the city of Bevelle, and on the bay nearby the city they saw a giant dark mass floating above the water. It was Sin. A massive black cloud was spiraling above the titan creature and massive lightning bolts lit up the scene, revealing flashing glances of Sin. As they watched this horrifying scene in helpless silence, they saw warships leaving the harbors of Bevelle and firing their cannons at the beast. Artillery batteries from the city walls lit up, sending fiery rounds flying toward Sin. The counter-attack did nothing to hinder Sin. The giant black cloud stretched forth from Sin, and towered over the city. The ships approached Sin in attack formations, until the giant lifted its tail and then brought it crashing down into the sea. There was a massive splash and horrendous sound. The wave turned up by it completely decimated the fleet, sending many of the ships crashing over the walls and into the city itself, a large portion of which was flooded by this tsunami. The black cloud spanned over the whole city then, and a strange ball of electricity began forming over Sin's head.

"That wave will be hitting us soon!" Kern warned them all.

"What is it doing?" Tidus screamed.

"It's making a thunderburst!" Auron shouted in answer to him.

Suddenly Sin nodded its mighty head, and the ball of lightning flew up into the black cloud. As soon as it reached the center of the thunderhead cloud, there was a total discharge of all the storm's energy, and the sky was filled with giant arcing lightning bolts and a sky-bursting crash of thunder. The lightning struck all the towers in the city, instantly killing the power to all of Bevelle. Fires could be seen glowing in the city, and they began to spread. Then, from out of the temple of Bevelle there appeared a large, serpentine dragon, glimmering bright red and gold in color, and it flew across the sky to assault Sin. This creature was massive, but dwarfed to insignificance by Sin. The dragon began hurling bursts of fire and black magic toward Sin, with minimal effect.

"What is that?" Tidus asked.

"That's Evrae, the guardian Aeon of Bevelle. It's their last defense against Sin. It's too late now." Auron lamented.

As the dragon Aeon flew in circles around Sin, desperately attacking the giant, it seemed that Sin barely noticed. Evrae was flying behind Sin near its tail, which abruptly swept to the side. Sin's tail struck the Aeon violently, breaking its spine, and Evrae fell down into the bay with a splash. A massive swarm of pyreflies came up out of the water, and Evrae was finished.

Sin floated higher and higher into the air then, rising up into the black cloud above Bevelle. A grim light began to glow from inside the clouds. Finally Sin peaked above the thunderhead with another giant ball of lightning forming above its head. Sin turned its head downward this time and sent the ball of electricity flying into the heart of the city. The flash that followed was blinding, and the sound of the crash was deafening even where they stood upon the ship, miles away. A rush of displaced air flew by them as a strong gale, and they had to hold onto the railing to stay upright. The whole ship was rocked by the wind alone. Tidus still watched the city, and he saw its towers crumble and collapse to the streets. Buildings were leveled, leaving a huge crater in the middle of Bevelle.

All was dark then, and Sin could only be seen faintly as random small lightning flew from the dissipating cloud. It had turned, and was heading back out to the western ocean. There was an eerie calm, but something was not right. They could hear a roaring sound approaching them. Captain Kern screamed to them at the top of his lungs.

"Get under deck!" He roared. A wave came rolling toward the ship; a massive, heavy crest of water. Tidus grabbed Paine's hand and pulled her with him as he lunged back to the steps. The wave hit just after they made it into the stairwell, and water surged over the deck and washed them down the steps. They felt the ship being hurled by the wave, and it was nearly turned over. They were rocked back and forth for a long moment of sheer chaos and dread. When the ship settled enough for them to calm their wracked nerves, they heard Kern shouting across the deck.

"Start bailing out water, before we sink!" He roared. He tossed two buckets down into the bay, and several of his crewmen came down with their own pails to scoop up the water that had flooded their bunks. Tidus and Paine took up the buckets and helped the crew, and as they carried water up to toss over the side, they heard Mino wailing in misery and lament. Auron tried to calm him down.

"Just relax, Mino! You don't know for certain. She may still be alive!" Auron said, but Mino was sobbing as he knelt down on the deck, powerless and bereaved. Auron finally left him and grabbed a bucket to aid in the bailing of water. They all worked together for over an hour, and finally Kern was satisfied enough to let a few of the crew stop. He took command of the helm then and steered them onward to the ruined city of Bevelle.

In Djose, Yuna was lying upon the plush bed of Setanta's yurt, covered in soft furs. She was naked and exhausted from love-making. Setanta had left the yurt while she was napping after their last fiery, passionate embrace. It was yet another blissful coupling in a long series of their lusty bouts since the wedding night two days earlier. Yuna was strung out across the bed, all of her nerves tingling so hotly with pleasure that she soon felt numb. She heard the snoring of Setanta's hound as the black lupine lay sprawled on the rug beside the bed. She giggled, and finally forced herself to move, first stretching out, and then sitting up and pulling on her robes. She stepped to the doorway and lifted the heavy flaps, peering outside to look for her husband. She looked across the valley to the west of the camp, and she saw Setanta striding across it in the distance nearby the clear little river that flowed down from the red rock mountains.

Yuna dropped the robe across the bed and reached for another heavier and thicker robe made of many furs, that hung on a rack by the entrance. She wrapped it around her slender frame and tugged her boots on, and then stepped out into the cold morning air. Yuna walked through the sandy and sparsely vegetated valley, approaching Setanta where he was fishing the river with a small spear. As she arrived behind him, he thrust it into the water and swiftly pulled it out with a large fish impaled on it. He turned around to fling it onto a canvas tarp that he had unfolded a few yards from the shore. He saw Yuna there, and his face instantly lit up with a pleased smile and warmth beaming from his eyes.

"I was just getting some fish for us. I can start a fire and we'll eat here." He offered. Yuna nodded and stepped slowly over to a large flat rock near the shore to sit down on. She took off her boots and put her feet into the cold river.

"Wow! That's freezing!" She said, and quickly pulled them out. Setanta chuckled, and began throwing dry stick and twigs into a pile.

"I'm surprised you could walk all the way out here, after last night and this morning." He said with a contented grin.

"It took me a while." Yuna replied, making a funny face at him.

"Well I'm glad you're here, Pretty." He said, smiling widely.

"It was your hound that woke me up with his snoring." Yuna said. Setanta laughed.

"Old Brutus? He snores loud enough to start an avalanche. That's why we live down in the valley." Setanta joked. Yuna laughed heartily.

"I never knew that lupines could be tamed, until I came here." Yuna commented.

"Well, I wouldn't say he's tame necessarily. He just happens to have a gentle spirit. But he is part of our pack, and he knows that I lead it." Setanta said.

"A gentle lupine? That's another first for me…" Yuna remarked incredulously.

"He must have been a mellow person in his past life, who just happened to die badly without being sent off." Setanta surmised.

"I suppose." Yuna said, wanting to change the subject then. She didn't want to think about anything negative, or about her old beliefs and duties. She had been spiralling through a very strange and overwhelming cycle of emotions for the past few days. While they were in his yurt, in bed or eating together, she loved Setanta more than anything and couldn't have enough of him. When she was outside, or had too much time to think, she started resenting him again. Today she was experimenting with trying to love him all through the day.

"Here we go…" Setanta said as he struck flint on the back of his hatchet and lit the pile of twigs ablaze. The fire grew, and Yuna hurried to sit beside it and warm her feet near it. Setanta knelt by her then and rubbed her feet gently with his strong hands. Yuna let her head fall back and closed her eyes, brimming with joy and pleasure. Setanta grabbed hold of her then and wrapped her in his powerful arms. He kissed her neck ravenously, and pulled open her robes. They made love beside the river, and laid together intimately for a while. Setanta finally got up and cooked the fish for them, and they ate together, talking and laughing. Finally they dressed and got up, and Brutus came dashing across the valley to join them. Setanta rubbed the hound's ears and caressed the fur on his back, gripping the lupine's hide and kneading it firmly.

"Well, we should head back now. We'll need to pack, and I need to get ready to tour Djose and visit the other tribes. We'll need to send emissaries across Spira, to gather others. Soon we'll have to pack up the whole camp as well." Setanta informed her. Yuna grimaced and looked away into the river. He just had to ruin it all again.

"When do we have to leave?" She asked bitterly.

"In a week the lunar cycle will be complete. If the Lord sends his sign, then we must march immediately." Setanta said with determination.

"Do we really have to go?" Yuna asked. Setanta grinned.

"Of course we do. You were there; you saw the miracle with your own eyes. We must obey the Lord's instruction, and follow it through to the end." Setanta answered solemnly.

"But think of all the people… think of the lives that will be lost…" Yuna said with a gasp. There was a wretched feeling in her stomach when she envisioned the coming struggle.

"Think of the lives that will be lost if we don't go." Setanta replied, unshaken.

"Why would Remphan command this war? How can he be willing to execute so many innocents?" Yuna demanded.

"Stop your blasphemy, girl. No innocents will die under my command. The men who oppose us are far from innocent; they have pledged themselves to the service of devils." Setanta growled fiercely.

"How can you say that? Do you know anything about Yevon?" Yuna argued frantically.

"I know it all, and you should learn it yourself. Speak with Conchubar, and he will tell you the true nature of Yevon, and their dark secrets. In any case it doesn't matter. You have seen the Lord and his light, and you received his blessing. Don't you dare turn away from it now." Setanta fumed.

"I don't want to… but I can't just write off all of those people, as if they don't matter!" Yuna cried in protest.

"It's too late. They brought evil upon themselves when they turned on the Crimson Blades, and became Yu Yevon's Crusaders. They have wasted centuries of time and millions of lives. Now we Red Blades have recovered the pact with Remphan and his teachings, and we will carry out his plan to rid the world of Sin. We have tolerated the manipulation and subterfuge of Yevon for long enough. Now it ends, and the age of light shall return to Spira. It is time." Setanta said. Yuna wept then, and steadily began to sob.

"Why did you ever take me in the first place? Why couldn't you take someone else!" She cried.

"You were already captured, Lady Summoner, as they called you. What do you think that Guado sorcerer had in store for you? Where would you rather be? With the devil you knew, or the devil-killer you don't?" Setanta challenged her. Yuna turned away from him and cried loudly. Setanta turned back toward his village and strode across the valley with his hound at his side.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: The Covenant**

 _The Brazen Spear_ glided over the waters of Bevelle Bay, coming into the city in the faint, pre-dawn light of morning. The sun began to rise in front of them, behind the city. They could see blackened buildings and shattered towers. Smoke still plumed up from the wreckage in several areas of the city. They would reach the docks, or what was left of them, within an hour.

Auron was standing upon the upper deck, toward the stern edge of the ship. Tidus stepped up onto the upper deck and went to join him.

"Auron… you said that Jecht was brought here to Spira. He went with you to defeat Sin… what happened?" Tidus asked, dreading the answer but needing in his heart to know it.

"We had this conversation in Luca, before you lost your memory. You didn't take it very well at the time. I was really not looking forward to having to explain it to you again." Auron said bleakly.

"Last night I was dreaming, and I saw Jecht standing on the water north of the ship. He went into the mist and disappeared. That was right before I woke up to the attack by Sin." Tidus told him.

"Well then, your intuition is trying to tell you something." Auron said.

"What is this pilgrimage for Yevon really about, Auron? Why does Sin keep coming back? What happens when it is defeated? What happened… to my father?" Tidus asked him insistently. Auron sighed deeply and with melancholy, and then he spoke.

"The pilgrimage is a secret initiation into the cult of Yu Yevon. The summoners travel across the land to scattered temples, where the Fayth rest. These spirits commune with the summoner and possess them; they come to dwell in the summoner's own body. During a summoning, the Fayth manifests as an Aeon to aid the summoner. The magic all comes from these spirits who inhabit the summoner. Aeons are powerful; however they cannot defeat Sin. For that, the summoner must complete the pilgrimage and arrive at the ruins of Zanarkand, to receive the Final Faith. This was once Lord Zaon, but now Lady Yunalesca's ghost is the one who bestows the Final Aeon. Only she is not a typical Fayth. She does not go with the summoner. Instead, she chooses one of the summoner's companions, and transforms them into an Aeon. This Aeon can defeat Sin, due to their bond with the summoner. However, once the battle is finished the Final Aeon must sever the link with the summoner, which will kill them. After having committed this murder, the Aeon is twisted, and becomes a seedling of Sin. They will cocoon deep in the ocean, and metamorphose into the next Sin. This cycle perpetuates, and cannot be broken." Auron explained to him.

"Are you telling me that Jecht… and Braska… died to create a new Sin?" Tidus demanded.

"Jecht was chosen to become the Final Aeon, and after he defeated Sin, he killed Braska. He severed his soul from his body, by ripping out the spiritual link between them. Braska's soul was pulled from his body and cut loose. Jecht was able to manifest as an Aeon then, independent of Braska's summoning. However, Yu Yevon attached to him, and turned him into Sin."

"You've got to be lying… you have to be!" Tidus screamed at him. Auron shook his head slowly.

"I didn't want to tell you everything at once. I wanted you to learn it along the way, so that you could accept it easier. But things have gone so horribly wrong… and I'm afraid there is no more time to waste. You need to understand the truth, and we need to devise a plan." Auron said.

"A plan for what?" Tidus asked, outraged.

"For the last victory against Sin, of course." Auron replied. Tidus gasped in disbelief and disdain.

"Are you kidding me! After what happened last night, you think that's still an option? We're all doomed!" Tidus screamed at him.

"Sin is not immortal, Tidus." Auron tried to reason with him.

"It might as well be! And now… you're actually telling me that thing is Jecht…" Tidus muttered in disbelief.

"You think I'm lying to you?" Auron asked plainly.

"No… I'm sure you're right. I felt it last night. It would fit perfectly with all the rest of the horrors of this world. Why the hell did you bring me here?" Tidus demanded darkly. Auron glared at him then. His patience was worn away.

"I gave you a choice in Luca, before the operation. You can come with me or take your own path. There's no way back to your Zanarkand from here. You said that you had to come with me, but I think it was mostly because of Yuna that you stayed in the party. Now that you can't remember her, you can think clearly about it. I'm telling you right now, that I'm going full-bore after Sin, and everything is on the table. I only need hardened soldiers ready to fight and die for the cause. I don't know how to motivate you for this fight, or how to get you to care about this world. All I can say is that your father grew to love Spira and its people, so much that he was willing to fight and die for them. The only reason why I brought you here, was because Jecht asked me to do it. He made me promise I would." Auron revealed. Tidus was frozen in shock, his breath had been stolen away and his chest throbbed miserably.

"What? Why… why would he do that?" Tidus stammered, bewildered.

"Because he needs someone to help him die. To put an end to his suffering. He trusts you to be man enough for the task, and he wants to see you one more time… before it's over." Auron said. Tidus quivered, unable to speak. He turned and clumsily walked away from Auron. He went down the steps and tried to make it back to the stairs to the bay. His eyes were welling up, and his face was streaming with tears. Paine appeared in the stairway then, and she saw him reeling across the deck. Her face changed immediately, from being pleased to see him to being distraught. She rushed to embrace him.

"What happened?" She asked, placing her hands on his shoulders. When he didn't respond, she put her arms around him just before he stumbled forward and his legs buckled. Paine hugged him securely and knelt down on the deck with him. "Tidus, what is it? Are you alright?" She asked frantically.

"I can't deal with this…" He gasped out. Auron came striding down to them.

"I know it's not going to sit well with you for a while. We're going into a rough situation now. If you two want to stay onboard, feel free. I'm going to try to find Seymour as soon as we land… if he's still alive." Auron told them.

In less than an hour they had arrived, but there was no longer any place to dock. Kern had to anchor his ship in the bay and take them ashore on a small motorboat. When they slid onto the wreckage and demolished brick and steel of the old docks, they all stepped out and carefully climbed up onto the cluttered streets of Bevelle. Tidus and Paine had come with Auron; Mino came along, and he went running to find his home, leaving them behind without looking back. Auron led the rest of the party toward the remnants of Yevon's headquarters, and Kern went with them as well.

They didn't speak as they wandered the empty streets of the dead city. It was an abysmal realm now, a ghost city or a scene out of a dark and melancholy dream. There were no people to be found for the first hour that they struggled to traverse the city's ruins. The middle of Bevelle was a crater now. The buildings around it were all black; the flash from the electric pulse had charred everything within several blocks. The heart shattering vision of what horrors Sin had wrought and could again at any time, were almost too much to witness.

"How could it have done this? Where are all the people?" Tidus asked.

"It happened at Operation Mi'ihen too… a different form of it. They were all vaporized by the energy discharge. It was so intense that it disintegrated them instantly." Auron said grimly. He walked on then, northward to the headquarters of Bevelle. As they walked to the edge of the crater zone, they saw human silhouettes marked on the blackened walls around them. It was a ghastly recording of the deceased. As they neared the Highbridge and Yevon headquarters, finally they saw the survivors huddled there in the plaza. They were ragged and dishevelled, and many of them sat in silence. Many of them were deafened or suffered brain injuries from the percussion of the blast. Others had caught shrapnel and projectiles from the explosion and the collapsing of buildings. Still more were simply to dazed and terrified to be responsive to anything. Some Yevon soldiers and priests, healers and nurses had arrived from various posts outside the city. The garrison of Bevelle itself had been destroyed, and most of Yevon's soldiers there were dead. The headquarters building was still standing, but when they entered they found it abandoned. The priests and the Maesters were gone.

Auron took the party back down to the plaza and looked for someone he could question. The priests, healers and nurses were all busy and he never dared to interrupt them. He approached one of the lieutenants who was in charge of a small detachment of soldiers.

"Do you know where the leadership of the city is at? Where are the Maesters?" Auron asked him.

"The army is in charge now. The Maester's have all fled to Guadosalam. That is the procedure, in the event of an attack on Bevelle. I have heard that Maester Kelk Ronso left the others and returned to Mount Gagazet, to prepare his people." The lieutenant told him.

"Prepare them for what?" Auron asked.

"For war." The lieutenant said bluntly.

"What? With who?" Auron asked in disbelief.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss it, citizen. Please move along." He said. Suddenly a group of chocobo knights came riding down the bridge. Their leader was Lucille, and beside her was Elma.

"Sir Auron, is that you?!" She called to him. She rode up to them and dismounted to greet Auron.

"Sir Auron, I'm glad to see you… but surprised that you're here. Where is Yuna? What happened to the rest of your party?" She asked him, visibly distraught.

"We lost her. Yuna was kidnapped at Operation Mi'ihen. We're not sure who took her. We went to Luca looking for answers, and came here on the trail. Now it seems that we have to depart for Guadosalam next." Auron said.

"Please, Sir Auron, I would ask you to wait first!" She beseeched him.

"Wait for what? If we don't find Yuna soon, and finish her pilgrimage, this could happen to Luca next." Auron reminded her.

"I understand that, but we need all the fighters we can get, and we need them now." Lucille said.

"For your war? What is it now? Who would be crazy enough to start a war right now, with Sin going on a rampage?" He asked her.

"We've heard reports of a tribal horde gathering in Djose. They will be departing in a few days, and they are coming here to Bevelle." Lucille told him.

"Tribal horde? Who are they?" He asked.

"The Black Eagles from the north, in Sin's Wake… Mounted Marauders from Mi'ihen, the Devil Dogs from the south, and the Bloody Tide Pirates from the east isles. They will be led by the Red Blade Tribe of Djose. They could be here any day now. I've heard reports that the Black Eagle tribe may attack preemptively on their own, now that they know Bevelle is defenseless." Lucille informed him.

"Well, they're not wrong. The city is defenseless… in fact, it's not even a city at this point. It's a ruin, just like Zanarkand. We should take the survivors and leave while we can." Auron advised her.

"We can't just leave the heart of Yevon open to attack and plundering!" Lucille refused.

"It's not the heart of anything anymore. The Maesters and priests have all fled. Besides, where is your army? All I see is a platoon of riders, and a few squads of foot soldiers." Auron argued sensibly with her. Lucille gazed downward for a brief moment.

"You're right… but we need to get the survivors to safety. That will take time." She said, begging for his help in her troubled eyes.

"Alright. You've got me there. But we need more soldiers. Why are there so few of you?" He asked.

"We don't have orders… we were hiding in Macalania woods when we heard the news. The Crusaders were excommunicated from Yevon, for our failure at Operation Mi'ihen. Our ranks were disbanded and scattered." She admitted. Auron sighed in disgust.

"Perfect timing for Yevon to make a lot of rash decisions." He remarked dryly.

"If we send out a few messengers, we may find some who are willing to join us." She reasoned. Auron shook his head.

"Unlikely, but the few that you get won't be enough. We need to get these people moving now." Auron said.

"We can set up some wagons, and start carrying them to Macalania Temple. They would be safe there…" She reasoned.

"They would, if we could get them there. It would be a hard path on the snow and ice through that narrow ridge, with all the wounded." Auron said bleakly.

"It's the only option I can think of… the Guado won't take us in, certainly not with this many refugees." She said, her spirits sinking.

"No… it won't do. The temple won't have enough room for all these people. They would freeze to death without shelter. We can send some of them to Luca, with Captain Kern here. He brought us on his ship." Auron suggested.

"Yes, that would help. If he needs compensation, I'll give him what my platoon has left." Lucille offered. Kern heard this offer and spoke up.

"The ride is free, this time. I was heading back to Luca anyway. I can take a hundred people, maybe, but they won't be comfortable." He said.

"That will have to do. Thank you." Lucille replied. Kern nodded, and he prepared to lead a group of people back to his ship. "So then what can we do for the rest?" She asked Auron.

"You're probably right. Evacuation is not an option. We'll set up a relief station in the Yevon headquarters for now. We'll also need a military command post, if we're going to defend the city. Send one of your fastest riders to Mount Gagazet to request reinforcements. Send a few more across the continent, to see if they can find any of the Crusaders. Tell them they have to return within two days." Auron told her.

"I'll send them immediately." Lucille said, and she turned to the task.

"Elma, take a few riders to the north, just outside of the Highbridge, and keep watch on the surrounding area. Come warn us immediately if you spot anything heading this way." Auron said. Elma nodded and mounted up to depart.

"Now… we'll see who has some fight in them." Auron surmised, and he went to the task of preparing the city and caring for the survivors. Auron, Tidus and Paine helped to take some of the wounded people and orphaned children to Kern's ship. They loaded them on board, and Kern spoke to Auron before he left.

"I'll take them to Luca, and try to recruit some fighting men. I'll return as quickly as I can. Do you think you can defend the city?" He asked.

"Not for very long, without a lot of reinforcements. I appreciate your help, Kern." Auron said to him in parting.

"Don't mention it. I just hope I don't lose my other hand this time." Kern said with dry humor, and then he went back to his ship and departed across the bay. Auron led his companions back to the plaza in front of the Highbridge, to make preparations to resist a siege.

The Red Blade Tribe hurriedly packed up their camp the next day and loaded it into wagons and ox-carts. Big, powerful aurochs were hitched up to the wagons and pulled them northwestward, across the valleys and desert plains toward the Moonflow, specifically where it branched off and flowed into the eastern ocean. The journey took them a few days, and they arrived to find a vast coastal plain, open and teeming with game, birds, fish and crustaceans. They decided to set up camp a few miles from where the roaring falls of the Moonflow poured into the sea.

Here they had everything they needed; plenty of food to be hunted or foraged, and sparse woods to be cut, deposits of iron and clay for use in crafting tools, weapons and pottery. They set up their camp, and the men hauled loads of timber from the forests further north along the rivers, which they then used to build palisades and fortifications. This would be their home for a while to come, they surmised. Setanta's messengers met them there, and informed him that the chieftains and leaders of the other tribes were on their way to meet him as requested. They would arrive just before the end of the lunar cycle. He would have little time to persuade them, but he prayed that Remphan's gifts would convince them of his worthiness. He set up his own yurt in the center of the camp now, since he was officially the tribe war leader. His father's yurt was right next to his own.

In his yurt he placed the short, ornate heartwood dresser that had been a wedding gift to Yuna, at the back furthest from the door, where her personal space was set up. A large, magnificent mirror was placed atop the dresser, as well as candles and incense, perfumes, lotion and makeup, and her growing collection of jewelry; all of the effects that a tribal girl possessed. Yuna came into the yurt after their bed was set up, and she sat down to rest upon it. Setanta stepped in front of her and took hold of her face, caressing her with his fingers.

"Glad to be done moving, Love?" He asked her.

"Of course." Yuna replied with a grin.

"You want to get comfortable for a while?" He asked, running his fingers through her hair.

"With you? Of course…" She replied with a seductive smile. Setanta took hold of her immediately and went wild. He made love with her for an hour, and then they fell asleep. Yuna woke up an hour later with her face rested upon his muscular chest, and she began gently tracing the outlines of his tattoos with her fingernails. She rubbed his muscles vigorously, until eventually he awoke. Yuna climbed over him to kiss his lips, and gazed into his eyes. He looked warmly upon her with a smile on his handsome face.

"You know, you're unbelievably sexy…" Yuna said as she ran her fingers along the side of his youthful face. Setanta smiled.

"You make a man feel appreciated… like a good wife should. You're a treasure of a woman, more precious than diamonds or gold. I was blessed to find you." He admitted to her. Setanta didn't talk overly much, or sentimentalize things, but he told the truth plainly and said what he wanted to say when it was called for. Outwardly he appeared simple at most times, but Yuna knew this was not the case.

"What are you planning to do with your life, when the Final Calm is here?" She asked.

"It depends, really. If I survive to see it, I'll continue doing the Lord's work, and I'll continue to serve my people and their needs. I will continue to do everything I can for my family and tribe, and the rest of Spira as far as I'm able." Setanta replied.

"Why do you think you won't survive? If you're able to defeat Sin, surely it will be in battle, right? You could survive…" Yuna surmised.

"I'll definitely try, if I can win and live both. But the history of Remphan's followers is filled with stories of saints and brave men who gave up their lives to fulfill the Lord's requests, and he blessed their descendents and folk because of it. If that is expected of me, then I shall certainly do the same. For folk and faith, I would do anything." Setanta affirmed devoutly.

"How did you become so devoted? Don't you ever think of yourself, or others close to you?" Yuna asked him.

"Sure I do. That's the reason why I do everything that I do. I always think about others. And in the end, I think of myself too. It serves a man best to live his life righteously and nobly, with virtue and courage. Otherwise, he doesn't have a good life, and so he is doing himself harm. But the virtuous man is a gift to all who know him. He is their strength and protection, their guidance and example. I don't say that to be prideful. All of us should follow this creed as well as we can." Setanta explained. Yuna considered what he had said, and nodded in agreement.

"I see. I think I want to know more, about Remphan and his covenant." Yuna said. Setanta grinned contentedly.

"You should go the shaman's yurt, and speak with Conchubar. He has been waiting eagerly to share the traditions with you." Setanta told her.

"I will!" Yuna said with a smile, "What will you do while I'm there, my Love?" She asked.

"I will be with guests in my father's yurt. The chieftains of the other tribes we invited should be here soon. I will be speaking and feasting with them. Tomorrow night will be the end of the Lunar cycle. Regardless of what happens between now and then, we must march for Bevelle as soon as the Lord has given his sign." Setanta said firmly.

"And I will go with you?" Yuna asked.

"That was the Lord's command. You'll have to come along with us to Bevelle, but I'll protect you. Nothing will happen to you." Setanta assured her.

"I'm glad." Yuna said, and she kissed him once more. Setanta and Yuna got up after a few moments of laying quietly together. They dressed, and went out into the camp. Setanta waved to her, and went to his father's yurt, with Brutus following at his side. Yuna went to Conchubar's yurt, and asked if she could enter. She heard his wizened voice beckon her, and she entered the yurt.

"What may I do for you, dear Yuna?" He asked her with a pleasant smile.

"I came to ask you some questions… there are things that I wish to understand about Remphan and his covenant." Yuna said. The old sage smiled and nodded contentedly, as if he were waiting for this.

"Ahhh, excellent. I knew you would. Very well Yuna, what should you like to learn first?" He asked.

"I want to know why you follow Remphan, and what his covenant is about." Yuna said.

"Oh yes, that's the best way to start." Conchubar said. "Obviously we follow Remphan because he is good to us and does not mislead us. You have felt his presence and enjoyed his blessings. If he did not do good for us, or if his plans led us astray and into misery, then he would not be the Archangel that he is, and we would not follow him. You see, Remphan has always been honest and forthright with his followers. He does not leave us in doubt, nor does he fail to reward us. He doesn't ask us to do anything without telling us why, and what will come of it. He has never encouraged blindness in us either; he asks that we accept everything on its merits. His way is logic, reason and philosophy.

"Remphan is not a Lord of ideals or schemes, or of excuses for vanity and inefficiency. His way is simple, direct and true. He is the fashioner of the cycles of time and events, and the arbiter of the powers that flow through the creation, maintaining it, keeping it in motion. His age is the golden age, bathed in the light of his star, and it leads to prosperity, peace and enlightenment for the people. The time is coming for his age to begin anew." Conchubar explained to her.

"How long will his age last? Why does it come and go?" Yuna asked curiously.

"Remphan molded and maintains the cycles and changes, according to divine will, which also bids him to follow these cycles himself. He is one manifestation, one expression of the Holy Spirit. There are seven avatars which the Holy Spirit invokes to do its bidding, to guide the evolution of the universe. Each of them rules their own age, and each age lasts one thousand years. Our present age is ruled by Shamash, and he is a dark lord of chaos and confusion, misery, suffering, and doubt. His rule grinds down the populations of the world, forces them to learn through hardship to strengthen their hearts, minds, bodies, and their resolve. The uncertainty and sorrow he causes will inevitably culminate in a finding of the true faith, and in triumph over all challenges. This arrives in the rising age of Remphan, who vindicates the good people, and eliminates all that is evil and corrupt." Conchubar informed her.

"He can eliminate all evil?" Yuna asked in wonderment.

"Very nearly all of it. All things that constitute the universe will continue to exist in it, but their nature may change and transform in certain times for certain purposes. In the age of Remphan, good will be strongest and evil will be weakest. However, the whole universe is a process of transformation and evolution to a higher state of being. Therefore, each age that passes becomes stronger and more refined in its qualities. This age of Remphan will be greater than the previous, and the next will be purer yet. In the final age of Remphan, all beings will be fully enlightened, the cosmos will be perfected, and the universe will be in complete harmony. Then all things truly will become one, and begin again." Conchubar said.

"So then… there is no Eternal Calm?" Yuna asked, discouraged.

"There will be a Great Calm for the thousand years of Remphan's rule. By the end of it, the people will have become complacent and then the age of confusion will set in, under the rule of Eris, and from then the world will become incensed with passion, and enter the age of Dione. After the people's passions have burnt out, they will enter the age of austerity and repression under Berenus, and then the warlike age of Enyo, then the age of materialism under Merrick, then the chaos and suffering of Shamash, and finally back to the golden age of Remphan. Each age brings its own forms of progress and accomplishment, which is then mostly lost during the rule of Shamash, but lingering traces of it remain to be rediscovered and revived in the age of Remphan. This continual process is what has led to the evolution and civilization of humanity." Conchubar related to her.

"So then… are the others Angels as well? Why do you worship Remphan? And if he is following divine will, then who is your God?" Yuna asked.

"There is only one highest of the high, and that is the Holy Spirit. It is the ultimate intelligence and will, that manifests and governs all of existence. It created all things and governs them through its avatars, who are manifestations of its will and embody cosmic power and intelligence. They naturally feel the will of the Holy Spirit within them, and know what they must do. As for the other Angels, they are to be respected in their roles but there is no need to revere them. The Archangel Remphan is the highest of them all, and his purpose is the highest and truest desire of the Holy Spirit, for enlightenment alone ultimately leads to fulfillment of evolution, which is the final fulfillment of the Holy Spirit itself and everything that exists. Once everything is united with the Holy Spirit, the creation will be complete and perfect, and the development of this universe will have crystallized into a perfectly ordered node of the multiverse. Once the multiverse has been ordered completely, then literally everything that exists will be in harmony with everything else, and there will be no possibility for suffering or evil for as long as the eon of order continues, which will be incalculable."

"It all seems so far away. How can any of us worry about it now?" Yuna asked skeptically. Conchubar smiled.

"Indeed, it is too far away for any human to comprehend it, and none of us need to be concerned with it at present. We only need to take care of what our time requires of us, and look to the future as a guiding light. For now, we are guided by the light of Remphan and his coming age is what we must concern ourselves with bringing about. In the height of the golden age of Remphan, there will be enlightened people who will ascend to help guide the universe forward. For now, we only need to pave the way for them to come. As for the other Archangels, they all serve their purpose, and all lesser Gods, Angels, spirits or devils; even all creatures and fiends, serve a purpose and are manifested by the higher beings that govern creation and make use of the lesser beings. This is how each Archangel rules the world. Shamash has ruled through many fiends and wicked men… but in particular he rules through Yu Yevon and through Sin. Yu Yevon was an ancient sorcerer at the end of an age of excess and gluttony. He was twisted by Shamash, to do his bidding by creating Sin. Yu Yevon continues to abide in Sin, and he refashions it again and again, to keep the world in chaos. The religion of Yevon is the institution maintained by Yu Yevon's followers, who are doing his bidding and ultimately serving the will of Shamash. This is why Sin must be destroyed and Yu Yevon must be killed, so that Shamash will lose his control and influence over the world. Our Lord Remphan has chosen Setanta for this task. He has also chosen you." Conchubar told her. Yuna's eyes widened and she looked to him in bewilderment.

"Me? For what? What can I do now that I have no powers?" Yuna asked.

"The Lord will provide, when the time is right. Until then, have faith and believe. You need not worry." Conchubar counseled her. Yuna was still not satisfied.

"What will I do… if Setanta dies? He says that the prophecy does not tell whether or not he will survive…" She asked.

"No, it does not. All things will come to pass as they should and as the Lord wills it. He has seen to what will happen, and we can only do whatever we must along the way." Conchubar said.

"And if he is lost…" Yuna prompted him further.

"He will be deeply mourned, of course. But nothing is truly lost. The powers that gave him life will bring him back again in another age and another form, when he is needed. So it is with everything. In the meantime, if he should die in battle he will enjoy the reward of Remphan for the next thousand years. It is not a fate to be feared, but rather one to be envied. In Remphan's realm, his soul will be illuminated with the ultimate light of realization and fulfillment. When he comes back, it will be as an even greater hero, if not a demigod." Conchubar surmised.

"And what about me? What will happen to me?" She asked.

"That remains to be seen. Do not worry, Yuna. We will always take care of you, now that you are one of us." Conchubar assured her. He placed a gentle, wrinkled hand upon her wrist to comfort her. Then he turned to the entrance of the yurt. "I'm afraid I must go now to Suldane's yurt, dear girl. He will wish for me to be there, and to observe the meeting of the chieftains. I bid you good eve, and rest well tonight. Tomorrow will be long and demanding."

With that he left the yurt and Yuna was alone. She gazed upon the images of Remphan, and knelt before the diamond figurine and the golden throne. She clasped her hands in prayer then.

"Lord Remphan, I am only a new follower, and I know little about you. Please be with me, and let me know that I am not alone. If Setanta may be spared, let it be so." Yuna beseeched the Lord in a soft voice. The figurine sparkled with a faint blue light, and she felt a strong presence around her. She took comfort in it, and basked in the presence of Remphan for a long while before leaving the shaman's yurt.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 : Moonlit March

When Yuna had finished her solemn prayers to Lord Remphan, she left the shaman's yurt and walked through the village, observing all of the Red Blade men and women making preparations for their guests' arrival.

She went to the edge of the village and looked through the palisades toward the sea and the Moonflow river. She saw several ships coming down the coast, and they anchored offshore as close to the Red Blade settlement as they could. Two small rowboats came ashore and a dozen men stepped out onto shore and came striding toward the settlement. From the south there came two bands; one was on foot, and followed by packs of lupines. The other group was riding upon dark tan-colored chocobos, with long spears in their hands. Another group came from the northeast, clad in black and with a few lupine hounds accompanying them, and black birds flying overhead of them. When they arrived at the entrance to the camp they were greeted by Setanta, Suldane and other Red Blade warriors. All of them came into the camp and went to Suldane's yurt for the feast and council.

Yuna watched the men walk through the camp. They were from four different tribes, each distinct from the other. The Black Eagles from the north were wiry yet muscular, clad in animal hides and furs, with black or dark red tattoos and long hair, and they had women in their ranks. Their upper bodies were usually bare, or else they wore open vests. The Devil Dogs from the south were clothed in leather and short-haired, and they had many lupines accompanying them. Their warriors were all men. The Mounted Marauders wore baggy trousers with tall leather riding boots, and armored leather jackets with their band's insignia embroidered across their backs. They had only men in their ranks. Lastly, there were the Bloody Tide pirates from the east isles. They had some of their women and girls accompanying them, but the warriors were all men. They were clothed in a variety of tattered and sea-worn outfits, with amulets and talismans around their necks, and sabers or pistols on their belts. They were randomly tattooed and pierced. Their captain was clad in a long coat, light blue in color, pinned with medals and jewels, and he wore a wide-brimmed, feathered hat.

They all entered Suldane's yurt, and Yuna stood nearby one of the walls to listen. Soon Emer came along and noticed her, and came to join her.

"If you want to listen, you should come with me to the secret back entrance. We'll stay in the women's partition at the back of the yurt!" Emer offered. Yuna nodded, and followed her to the nonchalant rear flap of the large yurt. They crept quietly inside amid the boisterous laughing and loud boasting of the men inside. They sat upon cushions, next to Suldane's wife, and they all listened in silence and peered through a narrowly open split in the fabric of the partition.

"Welcome to my yurt, friends and new acquaintances! I am pleased to have you all here to listen to my son Setanta give his offer. I hope that the feast is to your liking. You can feel free to set up camp alongside our settlement while you stay. I hope that you do decide to join us, but if not, let there be no enmity between us. Thank you, and again, welcome." Suldane said to them.

"We're here, Red Blades. Now what is the matter you've got in mind?" One of the leaders of the Devil Dogs asked.

"If it's raiding and plundering, make with the details. I wouldn't mind taking a swipe at Bevelle and Yevon, if we're all agreed to it. This could be the biggest raiding party they've ever seen, and they won't be prepared for us." The pirate captain said eagerly.

"It will be a raid, and you will all be rewarded generously from the spoils, but there will be no plundering of the city folk. We shall seize the headquarters of Yevon and all their treasure, and that will be your reward." Setanta told them firmly.

"No looting? Well then why did you invite us, lad?" The pirate captain asked, and all his men laughed loudly.

"Certainly I don't want to damage your reputation, Captain Korwin. But surely you know that the treasures and artifacts in Yevon's possession will greatly enrich you and increase your fame and fortune." Setanta reasoned.

"My reputation is for brutal slaughter, boy. Don't tell me that I need a proper introduction now…" The pirate captain said indignantly.

"There will be plenty of Yevon soldiers for you to sink your blade into, good captain. Your reputation will be maintained, if not enhanced." Setanta assured him.

"Well it better be." Captain Korwin said gruffly, but he smiled with a twinkle in his eye.

"As for the rest of you, this venture will give you wealth and power that you have not enjoyed before. It will greatly increase your influence in your own regions of Spira." Setanta said.

"What makes you so certain that we can invade Bevelle and defeat Yevon's best soldiers?" The chieftain of the Mounted Marauders asked him pointedly.

"All of us together will be more than enough to outmatch the armies of Yevon, especially after their losses at Operation Mi'ihen recently. I have heard from my scouts that the Crusaders were excommunicated and disbanded. They will not be able to reassemble them in time to resist a siege, if indeed they can persuade them to come back at all." Setanta surmised.

"It's better than that, actually." A syrupy, sultry female voice said. All eyes turned to the war-witch of the Black Eagles, who had been sent as their ambassador.

"Really? Do tell, Lady Raven." Setanta prompted her.

"Bevelle is defenseless and ruined. Just a couple nights ago it was attacked by Sin, and devastated. The Maesters have fled to Guadosalam along with their personal guards and a contingent of soldiers to protect the city. Most of Bevelle's soldiers are dead. My Queen and her horde will be there soon, to take over the city. They will be there well before we arrive." She said with grim satisfaction.

"Is that so?" Setanta said, taken aback. He tried not to seem discouraged. "So then why would she send you here now?" He asked.

"She sent us to warn you all not to interfere with us. The Dark Queen wishes to rule the northern continent alone. She will accept no rivals. In time, those who offend her will all perish. That's the way of it, with the Black Eagles." Raven said, with a wicked grin on her dark painted face.

"She can have the northern continent, but Bevelle belongs to all the people of Spira, and we will be going there to secure it, regardless if what you say is true." Setanta said firmly.

"I think not, young warrior. Bevelle shall be the throne of the Dark Queen, and she will reduce Yevon to nothing but cinders; their scriptures and sermons shall be leaves borne on the wind. The Old Gods are returning to Spira, and they will rule Bevelle and all of the north." Raven foretold darkly. Setanta shook his head determinedly.

"This is not a religious war, Raven. It is a war to destroy Sin and punish the corrupt maesters. Once it is done, there will be religious freedom, political liberty and free trade across Spira. That shall be the way of it, and your queen will come to grief if she resists it." Setanta warned her.

"We shall see, young boy. When you wish to test your mettle against ours and your Archangel against our Gods, then come to Bevelle. We shall be waiting there for you." Raven said, and then she and her warriors stood up and exited the yurt, and left the settlement.

"Well, that could have gone better." Captain Korwin quipped, and all his men laughed uproariously. He took his tankard of ale and drank deeply from it. Then he stood up, and all his men stood with him. "I'm sorry boy, but the world you have to offer is not for me. Although, I think I will enjoy my piracy more, if you open the high seas to your 'free trade'... but we shall see." He said, and then he and his men and their wenches all left the yurt to go back to their ships. Setanta shrugged his mighty shoulders indifferently.

"Well, now that the riffraff is gone, the rest of us can be honest with each other. Is anyone else here looking to make a friend, or do you all want one more enemy to add to the list; because I assure you, gentlemen, it will not go well for you if you refuse this alliance. Spira has been plagued by bad men for long enough. I am putting an end to all of it now, by the will of our Lord Remphan, and this is his boon!" Setanta said, and he pulled his red sword from its scabbard and held it up for them all to see it's perfection. The blade gleamed red like flame then, and the fires slowly died down and settled into the steel again. All of the guests gazed in awe, wide eyed upon Setanta, who appeared transfigured like an Angel then. Finally the leader of the Mounted Marauders spoke.

"I am Jericho, chief of the Marauders. I think it's obvious that Yevon has let Sin go too far now. Whatever is wrong, they can't seem to handle it. If you think that you can destroy Sin, I'll join you. But tell me… what makes you think that you can do this?" Jericho asked him.

"I can do it through the power of our Lord, the Archangel Remphan. He told us that he would provide a sign. Tomorrow, at the end of the Lunar cycle, the moon will not be blackened, but instead it will be illuminated by the star of Remphan. If the sign is shown, will that convince you to join me?" Setanta asked.

"If the sign appears, I will join you, and convert to the covenant of your Lord. If not, then I must take my people to hide in the mountains. We will have to weather the storm, in case Yevon and their summoners cannot bring a new Calm." Jericho told him.

"I understand. And you, Chief Barbay?" Setanta asked of the chief from the Devil Dog Tribe. Their chief was a bearded and wild looking man, big and stout, quiet, and clothed in furs.

"I'll join you if the sign appears, and help you capture Bevelle. I'll help you capture the maesters, and conquer Guadosalam. But as for Sin, I don't believe you can end it. Perhaps your Remphan will prove me wrong, but regardless my folk follow our own ways, and to that we shall remain." He said.

"Fair enough. I will not force anyone to convert once we have won. I will only ask that you respect our rights and beliefs, and that you respect the new world that we will be bringing. If you wish to live in peace, no harm will come to you. If you serve me, I shall reward you well. For now, you are my guests and we shall drink and feast, and be merry. All will be decided tomorrow night." Setanta said, and he raised a cup with his new friends. They all cheered, and began their drinking. Emer and her mother went out into the main chamber then, and took more food and drink to their men. Yuna came out as well, and went quietly to sit beside her husband.

"This is Emer, the flower of my yurt, and here is my God-Daughter Yuna, the wife of my son Setanta." Suldane introduced them both proudly.

"They are very lovely." Chief Jericho replied.

"We'll be pleased to visit your people, once this war is over, my friends." Setanta assured them.

They ate and drank and talked for the rest of the night. It seemed that they all had much in common, and common interests for the future of Spira in the Great Calm. The night was late before they retired, and in the end they all slept in Suldane's yurt. They woke late the next afternoon and went out hunting and fishing on the Red Blades' new tribal territory. They took their hounds and the Mounted Marauders rode atop their birds, and together all of them brought down a couple stags and a wild boar. When they came home to the settlement they cleaned their game and then Emer and her mother showed Yuna how to prepare another great feast. They worked on it all that evening, and by nightfall the men gathered at a long timber table that had been set up outside in the middle of the village. All of the people of the Red Blade Tribe also came out to sit on the ground around the long table, so that they could wait and watch the moon.

After sunset they saw the dark, shadowy sphere of the moon as it slowly ascended across the sky. The people were all silent, and only Setanta and his guests made conversation, but even they were reserved and anxious. Yuna felt the nervousness as well. She could not bear the thought of how distraught the people would be if the sign did not appear, but simultaneously she dreaded its coming. Setanta and all his men would leave for battle, and she would go with them. She would have to watch the bloody fight for Spira. She understood now, why it was necessary, but it still pained her deeply.

Finally, as the dark moon reached the upper eastern hemisphere of the sky, then the blue star of Remphan began to shine brightly, and its beams shot upon the face of the moon, turning it a bright and magnificent blue. The moon glowed full, with an eerie magical light. Then a loud horn was sounded in the village, and all the people cheered. Setanta raised his red sword above his head and shouted to his people.

"The Lord wills it! We march on Bevelle, to victory!" He called. All of his men roared with enthusiasm, and they scattered to gather their weapons and packs, and to say farewell to their families. Setanta and Suldane had the ox wagons pulled outside the entrance to the village, and the aurochs hitched to them, and their men threw their packs into the wagons. Setanta took Yuna with him to the first wagon and hoisted her up to sit her beside Suldane, who was driving it.

"Ride with my father, Lovely. I'll be leading the march. We will go straight to Bevelle, as quickly as we can, and rest only when necessary." Setanta told her.

"Be careful, my Love. Anything could happen along the way." Yuna cautioned him. Setanta nodded with his playful grin.

"Don't worry. Brutus will look after me." He assured her. Setanta took her hand and kissed it, and then he marched away with his men across the moonlit plains to the northeast.

In Bevelle, Auron was working to prepare the city and the few soldiers he had at his disposal. He ordered them to barricade the Highbridge and to turn the few artillery pieces left in the city toward the mainland entrance rather than toward the bay. When they had finished, he assembled his men in the plaza and gave orders on how to conduct the battle.

"When they come down into the valley, we're going to engage in skirmishes with them to try to delay their progress toward the bridge. This will give the artillery more time to fire on them. I'll need the chocobo knights to run flanking maneuvers for us, and the squads of riflemen will fall back by increments, covering their retreat. Once we return to the Highbridge, we'll take cover behind the barriers and hold them there. If we can't hold our position there, we'll fall back into the city and break into squads. At that point, we'll use urban guerilla tactics against them, and stay mobile to avoid getting caught. We'll have to cover each other from a distance. Conserve your ammunition, and shoot straight boys. This is going to be a long night." He told them. Tidus and Paine were watching and listening from nearby on the plaza. Auron turned and strode to join them once his speech was over.

"Do you really think we can hold the city against a horde, with only a couple platoons?" Paine asked him.

"Of course not. That's why we'll draw them in and split them up if we can. I doubt even that will get us far. I've never actually encountered the Black Eagle Tribe before, but I've heard rumors. They're fast, and fierce, and they love to fight. They're actually better at single combat and small fighting groups than battles with large armies. But I don't have much hope of any reinforcements arriving, so we'll just have to do what we can. If the situation gets out of control, we may have to escape the city and flee." Auron surmised gloomily.

"What about the survivors?" Tidus asked anxiously.

"They'll be at the mercy of the victors, so fight hard tonight." Auron said, and then he turned and walked down the Highbridge as the sun began to set. He unsheathed his great katana, and rested it over his shoulder. With his free hand he beckoned for the soldiers to follow him, and they fell into marching formation behind him. Tidus and Paine glanced at each other and then followed after the formation. Auron reached the end of the Highbridge and then motioned for all of the soldiers to halt. He stood there, gazing over the horizon to the north. On the road from the Calm Lands, he saw something cresting the hill and descending down into the valley. It was a marching force, dark blue and striding tall and with a powerful gait, and once they had fully passed into the valley he could see that they were several hundred strong at least. It was the Ronso from Mount Gagazet. The messenger Lucille had sent came sprinting toward the bridge to meet him, and slowed to a trot when he drew near.

"Sir Auron, I brought the Ronso warriors with me! When I told them the news of Sin's attack on Bevelle, and the coming invasion, they volunteered right away!" The rider said triumphantly. Auron smiled with relief.

"I should have counted on the Ronso. They never back down from a fight, and they don't tolerate injustice while it's in their reach, or in the range of a spear!" Auron said proudly. He laughed, and all of the soldiers behind him cheered and laughed as well. In a few more minutes the Ronso arrived, led by Kelk Ronso, Biran and Yenke. The old Ronso Maester stepped up to greet Auron.

"Sir Auron, I have brought three hundred warriors with me, all that I was able to gather in time. I hope that it will be enough to protect the city, until the rest of Spira comes to our aid." Kelk said to him.

"I can only express our highest gratitude to you, Maester Kelk. All of the survivors owe you for saving their lives. We could not have held the city without you." Auron told him graciously.

"You are fully welcome, Sir Auron, any time. Now then, what would you like us to do?" Kelk asked him.

"Give me a couple squads of skirmishers, so that we can hold the enemy out on the valley and in range for our artillery. Take the rest of your army onto the Highbridge, and be prepared to hold it for as long as possible." Auron directed him. Kelk nodded, and raised his hand in salute, and then he gave his orders. Biran and Yenke each took a squad of six Ronso braves with them, and joined Auron and his soldiers. Then Kelk took the rest of the Ronso warriors onto the bridge and stood behind the barricades at the ready. Auron still stood at the end of the bridge watching the valley, and soon he saw another smaller group coming from the southeast. It was a band of Crusaders, led by one of the other messengers Lucille had sent. When they arrived he could see Luzzu, Clasko, and others. Luzzu strode up to meet with him.

"Sir Auron, I'm glad to see you, in spite of everything that has happened. I can't believe it's come to this, and so quickly. And do you have any news of the summoner, Lady Yuna? I was told that she was lost, and you came here looking for clues. I know none of us expected to find Bevelle in such shape…" Luzzu said.

"I still haven't heard anything. I came here to ask questions, but Sin attacked right as we were crossing the bay. When we landed, we couldn't find who we were looking for, and then Captain Lucille recruited us to protect the survivors. We gathered them all into the abandoned Yevon headquarters. Apparently, the tribal raiders from the north are coming down to invade. More will also be coming from the south and the east. We've got very little time before they arrive." Auron told him. Luzzu nodded.

"That was what we heard from Lucille's messenger. I brought a platoon of fifty men with me; that was all I could find of the old Crusaders. I'm sorry, I know it may not be enough, but we're here to help, and fight hard." Luzzu offered.

"I'm glad you came. Don't worry… we have three hundred Ronso braves guarding the bridge. Things may not be so hopeless. It all depends on how many of these tribals we're dealing with." Auron said, trying to encourage them.

"Regardless, we'll fight to protect the city and the survivors." Luzzu assured him. Auron nodded, and motioned for him to take his men to the bridge. Luzzu saluted him, and then moved out with his men. As they went onto the bridge, an old man walked past them and came toward Auron. It was Mino. His face was anxious, but not as grief-stricken as it had been before.

"Sir Auron!" He called. Auron turned to him in surprise. He had not expected to see him again before the battle.

"Mino? What are you doing here?" He asked.

"I found my wife; she's not hurt, but her hearing is bad now. I don't know if it will recover or not. I took her to the shelter in the Yevon Headquarters." Mino informed him.

"That's wonderful news, Mino. Why aren't you with her? The city may be attacked very soon now." Auron warned him.

"I know that. I'm here to help, and heal people as best I can during the battle." Mino offered. Auron nodded gratefully.

"Thank you, Mino. Stay toward the rear of our army, and we'll send the wounded to you as they come." Auron told him. The old healer nodded, and went back across the bridge.

Auron continued to scan the dusk-lit valley with his eye. An hour passed, and the sun was sinking over the horizon. Torches and braziers were lit on the bridge and the city walls, but he could see little. However, in the fading light, he suddenly saw two chocobo riders dashing toward them from the northern hills. It was Elma and one of her scouts. They rushed to the entrance of the bridge.

"They're coming! A huge horde of them!" Elma shouted as she drew near.

"How many?" Auron asked.

"I don't know… it's hard to tell in the dark. At least two thousand, maybe three thousand!" Elma estimated. Auron rubbed his face in irritation.

"Alright men, we can hold the bridge from them, at least for a while. After that, we'll do everything just like we planned before." He ordered. He continued watching the valley then, until he noticed a large black mass crest over the hills to the north. This mass came down from the mountain ranges that sealed off the region known as Sin's Wake, a harsh region of badlands that few Spirans had entered, and even fewer returned from. It was the home of the Black Eagle Tribe. Auron knew that it was them.

"They're coming now!" He shouted, "Skirmishers, move out!"

The chocobo knights went riding swiftly into the valley toward the edge of the Macalania woods, from where they would charge. The squads of riflemen went into the valley and spread out, giving each squad a few hundred yards of space. They knelt in position and readied their rifles and carbines. The Black Eagles were aware of them, and they sent forth their own skirmishers. Chilling war-whoops and screeching from the trained raptor-fiends of the tribe cut through the night air and stung the spines of all who heard them. The Black Eagles were bird-trainers, and they had impressive flocks of war birds. Most of the Crusaders did not know this until now. Auron never believed the rumors, but he was afraid that he would soon find them true after all.

Throngs of wild raiders came charging across the valley ahead of the horde, and the soldiers opened fire upon them. They were able to kill some, but the Black Eagles were very fit and tough people, and they could sprint far and fast. The soldiers began to retreat quickly by squads, as Auron had commanded, but the last squad to provide cover before falling back was overrun and killed. Artillery shells flew overhead and rocked the valley, but there were not enough of them to effectively deter the enemy.

The horde lunged forward then, and came pouring through the valley. Hundreds of torches gave some indication of the size of their force, and it was in the thousands. Auron knew that the knights would do no good in charging such a force, and so he ordered Lucille to call them back with the sounding of a horn. The skirmishers and the chocobo knights all came rushing back to the bridge, and Auron took Tidus and Paine with him as he fell back to the barricades. The Ronso warriors held their spears and spiked clubs at the ready, and Biran and Yenke rejoined them at the front of their army. Auron and his companions stood in front of the Crusaders, and the mounted knights were directly in front of them. As the Black Eagle soldiers poured into the bridge, they came sprinting toward the barricade of twisted steel bars and bricks, and jagged splintered boards. They attempted to climb over it, at which point they were met with rifle fire and the thrusting spears of the Ronso. Still, dozens of them jumped over, and Auron was there to meet them, swinging his sword in a wide arc. Paine and Tidus stood to either side of him and cut down those who tried to bypass him.

It was hard fighting; the Black Eagles were ruthless warriors. Tidus suffered a wound to his shoulder from an enemy tomahawk, and he repaid it with a stab from his sword. He was bleeding, but he fought on desperately, and more enemies came to face him. Paine ran to his side and fought with him, killing the raiders or driving them back over the barricade. Soon the horde was fully pressed up against the barricades and would not allow their warriors to fall back across them. It became a brutal battle then, and bodies began to pile up, so that the Black Eagles had to climb over the fallen as well. Biran with his spear and Yenke with his club were bringing down dozens of enemies, and they encouraged all of the Ronso braves and Crusaders to keep fighting. Mino and Kelk Ronso healed the wounded and sent them back to battle when they were able to return. For a while it seemed they would be able to hold the enemy at bay, but the strategy of their foes soon changed.

Overhead the birds of the Black Eagle tribe began to swoop down and attack the defenders of the city. These black eagles were the namesake of the tribe, and they had long sharp talons and curved, murderous beaks. They clawed and pecked at the soldiers and the Ronso, and prevented them from focusing on the enemy warriors. Soldiers had to provide cover by shooting upward at the birds, a difficult task, as they could hardly see them in the darkness. Auron fell back to the rear of the force, pulling Tidus and Paine back with him.

"What are we going to do? We can fight with their birds harassing us, and who knows what they'll do next…" Paine asked urgently.

The two of you need to go to the soldiers operating the cannons, and tell them to wheel them down to the bridge, as quickly as they can. I'm going to hold the enemy on the bridge until you get them here." He ordered.

"What good will that do us?" Tidus asked desperately.

"We'll be able to shred the enemy ranks with them, and keep them guarded within our ranks. Go to it, and hurry. If we don't get a lot more firepower soon, we'll be pushed back and overrun." Auron told them. Tidus and Paine ran through the city then and climbed up the walls to the cannon emplacements. They helped the soldiers wench the smaller cannons and hoist them down from the walls closest to the bridge, and then they used chocobos to pull them to the plaza and down the bridge. They managed to get two of the small cannons that were on wheels, and enough rounds for them to fire a dozen shots. When they reached the back of the army, Auron and a few Crusaders guided them through the ranks to the front of the force, just behind the front line fighting. They loaded their cannons, and Auron ordered the men directly in front of them to stand clear and make an opening. They fired the cannons immediately, and sent rounds flying through the enemy ranks all the way down the bridge. The frontline fighters concealed them again, and allowed them to reload, then they repeated the maneuver again, and shredded the enemy ranks.

Auron had them repeat this procedure until they were out of rounds. The gory aftermath on the bridge was horrific, and the Black Eagle warriors were driven in retreat. They fled from the bridge and regrouped on the valley. All of the Ronso and Crusaders cheered triumphantly, but Auron kept them ready; he knew the battle was far from finished.

"Bring me more rounds, and keep your men ready! If anyone needs healing, see to it now, but don't let the front ranks diminish!" Auron shouted. The soldiers immediately obeyed and went to collect more cannon rounds, and they brought one more cannon as well. Since the bridge was cleared, they assembled the cannons at the front of the lines and stood ready to fire.

"Will they attack again tonight?" Kelk Ronso asked Auron.

"I wouldn't doubt it, and we can't take the risk of letting down our guard." Auron said.

"I agree. We're all prepared to stand watch through the night." Kelk assured him. They stood ready in close ranks, watching the bridge for the rest of the night. Tidus barely had time to think of anything in all the chaos, and now the anxiety of awaiting the next attack wracked his mind with apprehension. He did notice, however, that Paine was still close by his side. He turned and gazed sidelong upon her, and beheld her glorious battle stance. She was indeed, beautiful in that moment; a queen of battle. She noticed that he was watching her, and turned her heated, fearsome eyes upon him. She grinned tightly, and patted him hard on the shoulder in solidarity.

"We'll make it." She said calmly, and then she gazed ahead.

Tidus looked back down the bridge. He loved her, and he realized it then. He loved that he was not alone in this dark hour. He had never had such reassurance before in his life. He had never before had the feeling that someone else was by his side, ready to endure to the last.

On the red, rocky hills of Djose, Kimahri was jogging along toward a mountain range that he thought looked familiar. He was scouting ahead; The Ronso woman Neela and the Al-Bhed girl Rikku were not far behind him. He knew that they were as steadfast as he was, in the search for Yuna.

He passed over another line of hills and boulders, and he saw a small, gentle river below in a wide valley beneath the mountains. He rushed down and splashed across this river, and saw the charred ashes of a small campfire. For a moment he thought nothing of it, but still he came to a stop and gazed across the valley. He remembered then, that he had seen this place before. It was the same valley that he had seen in the vision at the Moonflow. He looked to his left, and saw the campfire, and he went and stood there, and looked across the valley. Then he turned and looked at the river. He looked back across the valley once more, and remembered the young man walking away across the valley, toward the village that had been standing under the roots of the mountains. A strong sensation of deja-vu came over him then, and Kimahri knew that this was the place he had seen in his vision. There was no doubt in his mind.

"What have you found, brother?" Neela called down to him from the hilltops.

"We are here!" Kimahri shouted back to her, and then he dashed across the valley toward the place where the Red Blade village had set. He came onto the area where the yurts had set, and he could see the clear signs that a large campsite had rested there. He saw the fireplaces and ashes, and the indentions in the sandy, rocky ground. As he stood inspecting the scene, Neela and Rikku came to join him.

"You found an old campsite, brother. What are you thinking?" Neela asked him.

"This is where Yuna was staying. They have since left this land. The wagon tracks are here, leading northeast." Kimahri said.

"So she was kidnapped by a bunch of nomads?" Rikku said in disdain.

"So it seems. They should not be hard to track. We can follow the marks left by their wagons." Kimahri said.

"That's something at least." Rikku conceded.

"Let's go." Kimahri said, and he began walking northward, following the wagon tracks across the valleys and plains. Neela came striding up beside him, while the girl Rikku steadily fell behind.

"The pace we're setting is too much for the girl." Neela said to him softly, once they were far enough ahead that Rikku wouldn't hear them.

"She did not say so. I thought she was guarding our backs." Kimahri said.

"She won't say anything while we're searching for her lost cousin. But she's exhausted; she might kill herself if you don't tell her to rest." Neela urged him. Kimahri nodded solemnly.

"We'll rest soon, but we have to move on quickly. We don't know what they might do with Yuna. If need be, I'll scout ahead, and you should stay with the girl." Kimahri told her. Neela nodded quietly. They heard the girl's footsteps as she rushed up beside them.

"Kimahri, what is Yuna like?" She asked him. Kimahri slowed his pace a bit, as he noticed that she was struggling to keep up.

"She is like you. Very determined, and very innocent." Kimahri said plainly.

"Why did she choose to become a summoner?" Rikku asked.

"She wanted to follow her father's path. And also, she wanted to do something for the people of Spira." He told her.

"Has she ever said anything about me?" Rikku asked, a bit anxiously.

"She asked me about her family, many times. I knew Cid, and I heard of you. She asked why you had never come to Besaid. Once she asked if we could go to Bikanel. I told her it was a dangerous place, and it would be difficult to find the Al-Bhed enclave." Kimahri said.

"It's my father's fault. I asked him if we could visit my cousin in Besaid once. We could have gone, but he didn't want to." Rikku said bitterly.

"He was a stubborn man. He did not like Yevon, or Lord Braska. He never wanted his sister to marry a summoner. I understand his feelings." Kimahri said rationally.

"And yet he allowed his niece to become a summoner." Rikku said indignantly.

"There would have been little he could do to stop her, other than kidnapping her." Kimahri surmised.

"Like she already has been?" Rikku replied, still upset.

"More or less. But that is in the past now. We must find Yuna, and let her decide what she will do. That is the only thing we can do." Kimahri said sternly.

"I could always talk her out of it." Rikku said.

"You can try." Kimahri replied. Rikku sighed in disdain and frustration.

"I can't believe people are all so willing to give up…" Rikku remarked angrily. Kimahri was quiet and said nothing for a long moment. Neela spoke up in his silence.

"Indeed, many people are quick to accept the things given to them, as unchangeable. But a few will not, and they embolden us all. Unfortunately, the loss at Operation Mi'ihen will discourage many people. But perhaps some will still be determined, to rid the world of Sin forever." Neela said.

"That's what I'm here for, and I'm not sacrificing my cousin to do it." Rikku affirmed.

"That is good. After all, anything is possible." Neela encouraged her. Kimahri found this difficult to listen to. He had never questioned Yevon before, but Yuna meant more than life to him. It stirred a deep conflict in his heart.

"We will find a place to rest soon, and I will scout ahead for a while." He said. No one argued with him.

"Alright, if you think we should." Rikku said, not willing to admit that she was exhausted. They found a cluster of large boulders, which would shelter them from any wind that might come across the valley. Neela gathered sticks to start a fire, and Rikku knelt down to rest. Kimahri started walking to the north again.

"I'll be back before sunset." He told them.

"That is good, brother. Be careful, and hurry back to us if you get into trouble." Neela advised him. Kimahri nodded, and then went on. He needed time by himself, to think. They would soon be out of the Djose region and nearing the offshoots of the Moonflow, in the wooded riverlands and coastal plains of the northeast. Kimahri had not been in this region for years, and he was unsure of what to expect. He was no less determined to cross it, to find Yuna and liberate her from her captors.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: The Conquest of Bevelle

On the coastal plains near the Red Blade camp, three figures appeared in the distance nearby the woods of the Moonflow, from the southwest.

A few villagers noticed them, and Conchubar came striding out of his yurt to see these trespassers for himself. They were walking steadily toward the palisaded village. He watched them for a moment, peering with his aged blue eyes. Two of them were tall Ronso people; a male and female. The other was a small young girl, slight of frame. Some of the few men left in the village came to see him, and gathered their rifles.

"Strangers are coming, Conchubar." One of them said. The old shaman nodded.

"There is just the three of them, it seems. Let them come, and we'll discover what they are after." He determined patiently.

After a while, Kimahri, Neela and Rikku came up to the entrance of the village. They waited at the open gates of the palisade wall, as men with rifles confronted them, until Conchubar strode forth to greet them.

"Hello strangers. You're in the territory of the Red Blade tribe. Why have you come so deep into the wilderness?" Conchubar asked them. Kimahri looked upon him suspiciously, and then spoke.

"We're searching for a young girl. Her name is Yuna." He said. He knew immediately by the look on the men's faces, that they were the ones he had been seeking. Conchubar smiled and replied.

"Indeed, we know her. She was married to our chieftain's son a couple weeks ago. I performed the ceremony, under the eyes of our Lord. She went with him to Bevelle. They only left a couple days ago." Conchubar told them openly. All of them gasped in shock at his words.

"What are you talking about? What did you do to her?!" Rikku shouted in outrage.

"You took her, and married her off?" Kimahri fumed. Conchubar merely nodded.

"Oh yes, better than that. She converted to the worship of our Lord. She is your demon conjurer no more. She has gone with our chieftain and his allies to free Bevelle from the talons of Yevon, and the Black Eagle tribe. Then they shall purge Sin from the world, as our Lord has decreed." Conchubar said contently. They all stared at him in bewilderment.

"Wait… so she's not a summoner anymore?" Rikku said, baffled. Kimahri lifted his spear and stood in attack stance, ready to lunge forward.

"You did something to her! Who are you? Why did you do this?" The Ronso brave demanded of the old shaman. Conchubar merely smiled, even though the men beside him raised their rifles and aimed them at Kimahri's heart. Conchubar motioned for them all to lower their weapons.

"Don't kill him. He's a noble creature, and I can see that he means well. But you must understand, Ronso, that the days of Yevon and their schemes are over. The sacrifice of the young men and women of Spira, is over. Yuna is in love with Setanta, and anyone could see that at a glance. They will save our world together, and bring forth a new era, and help to populate it with mighty children. It is all as the Lord has foretold." Conchubar said to them.

"He's a religious lunatic… and I thought Yevon was bad enough." Rikku remarked impatiently. Conchubar pointed a finger at her and rebuked her.

"Ha! Worry not, girl, the time is coming soon. Run your mouth for now, but the whole world will bear witness to his glory! The age of Sin will be over!" Conchubar said confidently.

"That's what the Yevonites have been saying for a thousand years. What makes you special?" Rikku demanded.

"We are the Red Blades, the keepers of the covenant with Lord Remphan, that Mi'ihen himself tried to revive, until Yevon betrayed him. We now have restored the covenant and seen it through; our Lord will not forsake us. Believe or don't believe, it matters not. His will shall be done. You have gained nothing from Yevon, and you Al-Bhed with your tinkering have likewise failed. Now the champion of Remphan shall take the field against Sin and defeat it once and for all." Conchubar said firmly.

"Alright, this is going nowhere. You said they went to Bevelle, right old man?" Rikku asked.

"Indeed, Yuna went with Setanta and his army. They will surely arrive at the city soon, if they have not already. I will depart presently, to go and join them there. The young champion will surely seek my counsel, once the battle has been won." Conchubar surmised.

"Do whatever you want, old man. We're going to be way ahead of you. Come on, Kimahri, let's go!" Rikku urged him.

"You should not go alone into Setanta's camp. It would be better for you to take me along. He will not harm you then." Conchubar suggested to them.

"You kidnapped my cousin! Why should I do anything for you, crazy old man?" Rikku asked, dumbfounded by his offer.

"If you want to see her again, it would be easier for you this way." Conchubar persuaded her.

"Really?" Rikku said, contemplating her options. Finally she made up her mind. "Fine, but don't expect us to trust you, or take care of you on the way." She said.

"Shaman, are you sure? They are infidels, we cannot trust them…" one of the villagers said to Conchubar with concern. Conchubar merely shrugged.

"They cannot harm me, lest the Lord wills it. I am under his protection." Conchubar said unflinchingly.

"So be it. Take us to Yuna!" Kimahri said gruffly. Conchubar took hold of his gnarled staff and strode down to the plains with them, and they all walked northward to the Moonflow roads and toward Macalania.

The night sky above the city of Bevelle was full of stars and all the illuminated strata of the cosmos. With the city lights out, the view of the sky was clear and untainted by artificial lights.

It was odd to see such a wondrous and tranquil sight above a city that was entangled in chaos, struggle and devastation. Tidus looked down from the sky and across the empty bridge, where only the bodies of the fallen and the broken barricades remained. The Black Eagle tribe had halted their attack for several hours now. No one knew why, and it was certainly unexpected. The two of them were standing near the side of the bridge, by themselves in a little corner behind twisted barricades. Auron came striding by along the ranks and spoke to Tidus and Paine as he passed.

"They're probably waiting for dawn, and then they'll attack with full strength. Be ready for anything." He warned them. After he had gone, Tidus turned to look at Paine. She gazed warmly upon him, and her ardency was apparent upon her starlit face.

"Hanging in there?" She asked him.

"Yeah. For now." Tidus replied. She looked up at the sky in reflection.

"You know, I never planned on coming back, but I certainly never thought I would see Bevelle in the shape it's in now. The whole city looks like my childhood, not just the back alleys or the under-city. I guess Sin has a way of turning things upside down." She remarked, and her voice was not as bleak or distraught as her words might suggest.

"Literally… Sin turned the Blitzball arena upside down in Zanarkand when he attacked it. I didn't know what was going on, but gravity had been suspended somehow." Tidus recalled then. Paine gave him a very curious look.

"How do you know so much about Zanarkand?" She asked him.

"I was born and raised there. Lived there my whole life, until a few weeks ago." Tidus said. Paine was still mystified.

"You sure that your head isn't still messed up?" She asked. Tidus felt a surge of hopelessness fill him then. After everything he had been through, to have doubts still introduced into his mind was maddening. He clenched the handle of his sword with a white-knuckled grip, and the leather of his gloves creased and cracked. He bent over in exhaustion and depression. Paine could see that he was deeply hurt.

"I'm sorry, if I upset you… it's just that Zanarkand is a ruin now. It has been for a thousand years. No one lives there… so I thought." Paine said cautiously.

"It's alright… I don't know what your world is really like, apart from Sin, and all of this chaos. I'm sorry if I said something strange. It doesn't matter now anyway; there's no way home for me, Auron said so himself." Tidus said dimly. For a moment they said nothing, and Paine gazed upon him sympathetically.

"Well, if that is true, I suppose you can always get comfortable here…" She said. Tidus looked up at her then as if she had said something utterly insane. Then he grinned, and she chuckled, and then they both laughed together.

"Thanks… but I'd probably be more comfortable hiding in a cave for the rest of my life." Tidus said. Paine shrugged.

"There's plenty of those in Spira, actually. We could try it." She suggested. Tidus grinned.

"I think I'd get lonely though, and start to go crazy. I'm not a monk after all…" He surmised.

"I hope not… I said 'we' for a reason." Paine said, grinning back at him. Tidus looked at her with a serious expression then.

"You were serious?" He asked in bewilderment. Paine nodded.

"Sure. Why not?" She said. They both laughed again.

"Are you sure you could spend that much time with me?" He asked her.

"Only one way to find out. What more could we want out of this life, anyway? Love should be enough, since we can't get anything else." She reasoned. Tidus looked into her eyes, and saw no lie in them. Indeed she was beautiful, and beaming with life. He looked away down the length of the bridge then.

"It's enough, isn't it?" She asked again.

"I don't know… I've never had it before…" Tidus admitted.

"Neither have I, but it has to be worth it, right? I mean, nothing else really is…" Paine said anxiously.

"I guess so… I hope so. I mean, surely something in life has to be worth while, or life wouldn't exist. It makes sense… it must be love then. But really? So soon?" Tidus asked, pretending to be cautious. In reality, he already felt it himself.

"Why not? If we could die at any moment, why can't we fall in love as well? I know that I'm not perfect, and I had a bad past, but life is all about the present and the future. The past is gone. Your past is gone too. Don't you think I could make you happy?" She asked.

"Yes… you would." Tidus admitted. Paine smiled at him contentedly, and with a touch of mischief in her fair face.

"Then let's go!" She said. Tidus' heart jumped, and he felt a quivering feeling throughout his body.

"Right now? We're in the middle of a siege!" He said.

"Well of course there are going to be bumps in the road once in a while…" Paine said with a smile. They both laughed again spontaneously. It was gallows humor of course, but they couldn't help it.

"If we do get out of here alive, yes… let's run away immediately." Tidus said.

"If? Well, you need something for luck then…" Paine said, and she stepped in close to him and placed her hands firmly on the sides of his face, turning his chin downward with her thumb. She leaned up and kissed him. Her touch was hot like flame and full of overwhelming passion. Tidus wavered dizzily, but Paine wrapped her arms around him and their lips never parted. When she finally released him from this fervent kiss, he gasped for breath and felt the vigor of a fighting spirit surge throughout his body. Paine smiled at him as she stood cuddled up to him, and then she rested her head against his chest. Tidus hugged her firmly, but he felt too energized to stay still. He whooped loudly and unabashedly. Suddenly they heard clapping, laughter and cheering around them. They hadn't noticed that everyone else was watching them. Tidus didn't care, in fact he felt the spirit of the moment and took charge.

"Why should we wait here for them! Let's attack!" He shouted. All of the men laughed again, but Biran and Yenke stepped up to the lead of the Ronso and bayed in their loud, deep voices.

"He's right! Seize the momentum! We must move our force to the edge of the bridge and keep them from entering it! Skirmishers and riflemen will stall their advance! Move up! Let's go!" Yenke ordered. All of the Ronso roared a battle din, and marched behind their leaders to the far end of the bridge. Crusaders rolled the cannons up behind them, and took a few barriers and sandbags to place in front of their ranks at the entrance of the bridge. The faint glow of dawn was spreading from the east while they worked. When they had finished, Tidus stood on top of the sandbag wall waving his sword in the first rays of the sun, and it glimmered like fire, like sunlight upon the waters. Paine stepped up beside him and he was further emboldened.

"Whew! Come up here you painted freaks! Give me more bodies to stack up!" Tidus shouted across the valley. The campfires and torches of the Black Eagles were not far away. Soldiers began taking pot-shots at the camp then, and war screams came ringing out across the misty vale. In the growing light, the tribal warriors came sprinting in droves toward the bridge. Gunshots were steady then, and Ronso warriors sprang over the wall and started hurling spears at their enemies. Black Eagle warriors were falling across the field, but they kept charging until they clashed against the warriors in front of the wall. Tidus jumped down onto the ground and swung his sword wildly, and Paine followed to guard his back. Crusaders pushed one of the cannons up to the edge of the wall and fired it into the middle of the approaching mass of warriors. It devastated the Black Eage vanguard, but they were so affronted by Tidus' taunts that they had to keep pushing forward. A whole mass of more than two thousand of them was still marching up toward the bridge. The melee was soon a maelstrom, and there was barely any control over the battle. Auron was directing the soldiers from far behind the frontline.

Meanwhile, no one on the field noticed as another force emerged from the edge of the Macalania woods to the west. Setanta led his men onto the fringe of the vale, and gazed down upon the field and the besieged city. He saw before him a metropolis ruined and two forces battling over its barely warm corpse. He saw the broad mass of the Black Eagle tribe, and the meager forces of the defenders upon the Highbridge. He could see that the enemy horde was more than twice the size of his own army, and furthermore the defenders of Bevelle would resist him as well. He knew he would have to manage them both to his own advantage. He determined his avenue of attack.

"There's too many of them… this is gonna be a slaughter." Jericho said to him. Setanta ignored him and took his blue halo out of a satchel and rested it upon his brow. He then drew his sword, and the red blade glimmered in the morning light.

"Jericho… take your Marauders to the north side of their force and flank them, while we charge the middle head-on. Stay away from the bridge; we'll let them fight for us until we're ready to take the city from them. Barbay, stay with me and my father. We'll lead the charge and let the hounds rip them open right before we break into their ranks." Setanta said in a voice that carried authority, and while his crown sat upon him he seemed like he embodied a hidden power. All of them listened to him then and obeyed him. His father Suldane came out of the woods and stood beside him, clad in leather armor with a steel-plated belt and steel shoulder pads, carrying a large double-headed axe. A dark red and green bandana was wrapped around his forehead to hold back his long black hair, and his steel-gray eyes gleamed with courage and the joy of battle.

As they stood there, suddenly a blue beam fell upon them from the sky to the north. Setanta turned his gaze up to the shining star of Remphan, and then he lifted his long sword high and pointed it across the field upon the enemy. He called out in a mighty voice.

"His light is upon you! In the name of the Lord, attack!" Setanta roared, and while he spoke Suldane lunged forward with his axe over his shoulder, running down the valley toward the enemy. (Suldane's battle-theme is "Steel of my Axe":  watch?v=ef_6rR1l6a4 by Doomsword.)

All of the Red Blade men charged after him, whooping and roaring eagerly. Setanta ran among them, and the Devil Dogs followed him. His hound Brutus was dashing alongside his father, gleefully and energetically, as if he was playing rather than running into battle. The Marauders held back for a time, but Jericho did not abandon them; he sounded their loud battlehorns across the field, and then they all charged. The chocobo riders sprinted ahead of the tribal warriors on their northern side and unleashed rifle fire upon the Black Eagles. The Marauders circled around and went back then, and prepared for another flanking attack. The Black Eagle horde turned much of its mass toward the charging newcomers, but Setanta and his men did not hesitate. They charged on, and their hounds met the hounds of the Black Eagles in vicious battle, and then the warriors of both sides clashed in a horrific and bloody assault. Suldane threw himself into the midst of his enemies and swung his axe wide and far, killing everything that came in his reach, and he opened the first swath for all the rest of his allies to penetrate into the Black Eagle horde.

Setanta plunged into the enemy ranks soon thereafter and was quickly parallel to his father, fighting his way through and swinging his long-bladed sword with ease, with two hands or one, it mattered not, for he had full mastery of his weapon and the might to use it effortlessly. They killed many that day, and the bloodletting stained the whole valley red. The Black Eagle horde would not be easy to cull, however. Their Queen had to be there, Setanta knew, but he did not yet see her. The war-witch, Raven, was there in the front of the horde near the bridge, and she was battling fiercely against the Crusaders to gain entry into the city.

The Red Blades and the Devil Dogs fought on tenaciously, and the Mounted Marauders aided them with another flanking charge. By then, the main body of the Black Eagle horde suddenly split apart and scattered, but they did not quite retreat. They engaged their foes in skirmishes and small battle-groups. This was their greatest talent in war; the ability to fight as individuals and yet still coordinate with each other and hold firm to the struggle. They unleashed their black birds then, and the dark eagles and bile-spewing vultures came overhead, harassing the tribal warriors. Setanta ordered the Marauders to shoot them down, but it was a difficult task. He battled onward alongside his father and Chief Barbay. Suldane with his axe and Barbay with his spear, were able to crush many skirmisher gangs. Setanta led them on, chasing the scattered horde northward to the wooded path that led up beside the mountains that concealed the region of Sin's Wake. It was then that they saw the Dark Queen arrive, but not as they would ever have suspected that she might.

The Queen of the Black Eagles came riding over the battlefield with a hundred of her war-witches… not on the ground, but upon the sky. Giant fiend-birds, the black-feathered Zu variety, carried the Queen and her entourage over the mountains and fields toward the city of Bevelle. They flew into the city itself to begin their attack. The giant wingspans of their birds flying together was enough to overshadow the plains and the city streets. When they first arrived, each of the witches had two round clay pots tied to their saddles, one on each side. They lit the wicks of these round oil-filled vessels and let them drop at their discretion as they flew over the battlefield and the city. Fires dotted the field and filled the streets. It was utter mayhem.

Setanta and his warriors battled on, but they were far from the Highbridge. On the sandbag wall, Tidus and Paine were fending off the dwindling tribal raiders who still assaulted the barricades. Auron came to find them there. He was desperate and beleaguered as he shouted to them for aid.

"Tidus! Paine! Get back onto the bridge! The city is burning, and we need teams to put out the fires! The enemy is using their birds to drop off their warriors inside the city!" Auron informed them.

"How can we hold the city from the bridge and from within?" Tidus asked him in dismay.

"I'll keep most of the men on the bridge. Both of you need to take a team of soldiers and go clear the city. Take Biran and Yenke with you. Go! Quickly!" Auron ordered them, and then he pushed his way through the ranks to the front of the bridge.

"Alright, let's do this!" Paine called, and she rallied a group of five Crusaders around her. Tidus grabbed hold of half a dozen men and pulled them back, beckoning for them to follow him. Biran and Yenke came along with a dozen Ronso braves, sent by Auron to join them.

"Let's split up into teams but stay in sight of each other so we can back each other up. We've got fires to put out and enemies to hunt down!" Tidus shouted. He motioned for them all to follow him as he turned and jogged down the bridge and into the city.

Meanwhile on the edge of the woods, Yuna stood watch alongside a few of the older Red Blade men who had driven the wagons on their trek. She beheld in anxious quiet as the forces arrayed before her struggled for dominance. She felt helpless then, realizing that there was nothing she could do for anyone below. Her powers had been stripped of her, and now she was reduced to a spectator of the fate of Bevelle, Yevon and Spira. She gazed up into the majesty of the morning sky, painted purple and orange by the radiance of the rising sun, and she beheld the blue star of Remphan still burning bright. She fell upon her knees in prayer.

"Lord, what can I do? Please, let the innocent be spared!" She begged, and in her heart a brimming sea of compassion overflowed and flooded her spirit. Then she saw one of the starbeams turn toward her, and a spiraling blue tunnel of light opened up before her. This astral gate glowed with golden light in its center, and out of it sprang three angels, flying in a swirling path along the tunnel to come meet her. They were quick as darts, until they exited the tunnel and floated gently down before her. In deep and resonant voices they spoke, and the first among them stepped forward to greet her.

"Lady Yuna, the Lord wills it that you shall carry his grace, and heal the wounded, and protect the virtuous, and foresee glimpses of that which is fated. I give you the first sphere of his blessing, which is healing, the mercy of the Lord." He said, and as he lifted his radiant hand he tossed forth a shimmering blue orb of magic. It floated above Yuna's head and rested atop her crown, and then flowed into her and dispersed throughout the energy pathways of her body. Yuna felt the warmth of the magic entering her, and knew it in her mind, and felt that she could summon it up at will. The next angel approached her then and spoke.

"Lady Yuna, I give you the second sphere of his blessing, which is warding and protection, the grace of the Lord." The angel said, and he cast forth a rosy pink sphere that hovered over her head and likewise descended into her crown and dispersed. Then the third angel stepped forward.

"Lady Yuna, I give you the third sphere of his blessing, which is divination and foresight, the light of the Lord." He said, and a golden orb sprang from his hand and over her head, and it too descended into her crown and filled her mind with the light of knowledge. Yuna knelt and received these gifts, and she was so profoundly arrested by the presence of the angels and the power of the magic they had bestowed upon her that she could neither stand nor speak. The angels floated back into the tunnel and whirled away, and then the starbeam vanished. All of the old men around her were muttering in reverence, and knelt on the ground before her.

On the battlefield Setanta was winning wherever he went. Lupines and charging warriors tried to attack him, but he cut them all down with his red blade. Brutus lunged forth from his side to attack and delay his enemies. Suldane and Barbay fought alongside him with axe and spear. Finally the Black Eagles were too bloodied and cleaved to give battle anymore and they wholesale quit the field, fleeing northward for the mountains or into the Calm Lands, or to hide in Macalania woods. Only those struggling before the bridge remained. Setanta turned his men toward the bridge then, and they pinned Raven and her warriors between the defenders and their conquering ranks. Raven held firm and continued to fight, until she was wounded in the thigh by a spear and fell back onto the mud and bloody turf of the field. Others of her people fell on top of her, and still more were captured or killed.

When Setanta and his men had cleared the Black Eagles from the field, he then led them briskly up to the bridge where Auron awaited him, standing atop the sandbag wall with Ronso and Crusaders behind him. Their ranks had been greatly depleted, and Auron knew he could not resist this new army of warriors, who seemed unstoppable in battle. Setanta strode up in front of him and came to a halt a few yards from the barricades. In his sonorous and regal voice, Setanta spoke to them all.

"I have crushed the Black Eagles and liberated Bevelle. I am here to claim the city in the name of Lord Remphan. Drop your weapons and surrender, and no one else will be harmed." Setanta offered. His terms made them all quiver anxiously. They were all weary of fighting and dying, and he seemed benevolent rather than threatening. Still, they were suspicious of him, and knew nothing of the Lord he spoke of. Auron gave a reply.

"There are wounded civilians inside the city. Can we have your word that they won't be harmed?" Auron asked.

"No one else will be harmed if you surrender now. Drop your weapons, I won't ask again." Setanta said, raising his voice for them all to hear. Auron stepped slowly and sorely down from the wall, and took a closer look at this young warlord before him. After a brief moment he let his large katana drop from his shoulder and clank upon the bloodied ground. Immediately all of the Crusaders followed suit and dropped their weapons. Only the Ronso refused.

"Am I not making myself clear? Do I look like a man to be crossed?" Setanta said to them fiercely.

"Ronso never surrender arms!" one of the braves shouted. Suldane stepped forth furiously with his axe.

"Then I'll bash in your skulls and hack off your limbs! I'll mix your blood with whiskey and drink to the praises of the Lord!" Suldane roared at them. Even the Ronso shifted nervously at his proclamation. Auron raised his hands and tried to moderate.

"Wait! No one else needs to die! We can settle this peacefully…" Auron urged them.

"You had your chance, and I'm not in the mood for games. A real man doesn't balk at offers of peace. Are you not in charge of your own army?" Setanta asked Auron. Then Kelk Ronso stepped forward and took charge of his Ronso warriors.

"Put down your weapons, all of you! Now!" The maester demanded. The Ronso slowly obeyed him.

"Who are you?" Setanta asked him.

"I am Kelk Ronso." The old maester replied. Setanta looked upon him with a contented grin and a vengeful glimmer in his eye.

"Really? You're just the man I was looking for. Your braves can keep their weapons for now. You and I need to have a talk." Setanta told him. Kelk looked upon him hesitantly, but he nodded and turned to dismiss his warriors.

"Stand down and be still. Do not bring us to grief." Kelk ordered them all. The Ronso grumbled yet did his bidding. Kelk strode to meet Setanta and his men. Auron went with him, and together the two old warriors stood before this brazen young conqueror and his blood-spattered followers. All of them gave their captured foes a grim look, from countenances hard as steel. Setanta spoke to them in a calm tone.

"I have heard that Kelk Ronso is the only maester in Yevon who has honor. Since you are the only one of them here now, defending the city and the people, I should think that the rumors are true. If you're an honorable man, you must know that the corruption of the maesters has to be punished. Is it so?" Setanta asked. Kelk said nothing, but he nodded resolutely. Auron spoke up in his silence.

"Is that what this is about? We're in the middle of Sin's worst campaign in centuries, and you want to start a war now, over politics?" Auron said in disbelief. Suldane got in his face and glared menacingly into his eye.

"You think their crimes are just 'politics'? You think conquerors need to apologize to degenerates like you? Open your mouth one more time and I'll smash your face in, old boy, you can count on that." Suldane said, still full of fire from the battle. Auron glared at him in silence.

"Wait father, there's no need for that. I don't expect them to understand what we're about now. After all he's right… Sin has devastated Spira's greatest metropolis. But we will put an end to Sin, once and for all." Setanta said confidently. Auron and Kelk looked at him in bewilderment.

"How can you say this? How is it possible?" Kelk asked him.

"By the power of our Lord. We will erase the evil of the maesters, and free the people from their wicked rule. This will weaken Sin's influence, and when we face it in battle we shall be triumphant." Setanta said.

"I don't understand. How can it be?" Kelk asked him in disbelief.

"It will be made clear to all of you soon. Until then you have a choice, and I give it to you only because of your reputation. You and your warriors may accompany me to Guadosalam to capture and execute the other maesters. If you will not, then you must send them all home and stand trial here." Setanta offered his ultimatum. The old Ronso cocked his head in bafflement.

"That's not much of a choice, young warlord. Obviously I will go with you. I know that what you say of the maesters is true, and indeed far more true than you may know. They deserve punishment… if they deserve it from you, I cannot say, but nonetheless it is better for them to be stopped now. Who can say what they might do in the next Calm, after all that has happened now. But if I vow to help you, will you vow that under your own leadership the people of Spira will be protected, and shown mercy, and cared for with compassion for their suffering?" Kelk asked him. Setanta met his gaze solemnly.

"That is the end of everything that I am fighting for. It shall be so, as the Lord commands." Setanta affirmed. Kelk saw that there was no lie in him, and so the old Ronso nodded in agreement.

"So be it. My spear is yours." Kelk said. Setanta extended his hand in friendship, and the Ronso shook it firmly. All of Setanta's men cheered, and one of them shouted, 'Setanta the Magnanimous!', after which all of them laughed and praised him loudly. The Ronso began to cheer as well, hesitantly at first, but they accepted this new alliance.

"Death to Yevon! Death to Sin! Death to the Maesters!" Suldane began chanting, and all of the tribals chanted it too, until finally even the Ronso and Crusaders joined them. Setanta raised his sword high as they all cheered and saluted him.

In the city, Tidus and Paine were still working to put out the flames started by the witches and their birds. As they ran down the cluttered streets, a few Black Eagle warriors came out of the alleys and attacked. They fought through the streets, and made their way easily with Biran and Yenke's help. They won the fight and began dousing or stamping out the flames, and it seemed that they may have stopped the onslaught. Tidus and Paine regrouped on a wide street that led back to the plaza and surveyed their surroundings.

"Did we get them all?" Paine asked.

"I don't know… I still smell smoke somewhere." Tidus answered. They kept marching down the road further into the city, scanning for signs of trouble. Finally they saw a fire that was burning on top of a tall building.

"What can we do about that?" Paine asked.

"Nothing… it would be too dangerous. That place looks ready to fall down." Tidus said. It was a three story building, standing just on the edge of the crater that Sin had created in the middle of the city. One of its walls was crumbling, and it appeared to be leaning slightly.

"Let's move on then." Paine concluded.

"Sure." Tidus said. As they turned back down the street, suddenly they heard a cry from within the building. They both turned immediately and scanned the windows. On the uppermost floor, a little boy was waving his hands out of one of the windows. Tidus instinctively ran into the building and found the stairs collapsed. Paine was right behind him.

"How can we get up there?" She asked frantically.

"I'll climb up." Tidus said. They ran back outside and looked for any way he could get up to the third floor. He saw a dilapidated steel fire-exit on the side of the building near the crater. He dashed up it, and felt it creaking beneath him.

"Wait! Don't go up there!" Paine urged him, but he kept going until he made it to the third floor and he dived into the window at the end of the hallway. He rolled over the floor and crouched low under the smoke coming down from the roof. He could feel the intense heat of it, and wondered how much longer it would stay upright. Tidus ran down the hallway until he found the young boy in a room by himself. He grabbed the boy and took him back down the hall immediately, and lifted him out of the window.

"You go down first, ok?" Tidus told him. The boy nodded and ran down the wobbling metal stairs. Tidus waited, and then climbed out of the window himself. He started toward the steps, but he was met by the black terror of a giant Zu bird flying toward him. The fiend-bird swept the fire-escape with its talons and yanked it away from the building. Tidus felt himself thrown out into the air, and his stomach turned as he fell down into the darkness of the crater. He heard terrified screams from the street, but he saw nothing but darkness as he descended within. He hit the floor of the subterranean realm and immediately blacked out.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: The Redeemer of the Fayth

On Bevelle's bloody plains, Setanta and his men stood triumphant over their foes, all trampled under their boots like weeds. They had crushed the main force of the Black Eagle tribe and secured the city and the surrender of its defenders, but the fighting was not all over yet. The Dark Queen remained aloft in the sky, and her hundred war-witches along with her. She had other allies on the way as well.

On the eastern seas, on the other side of the narrow isthmus that connected the northern and southern continents of Wilderia, there began to appear a fleet of ships. As they drew closer, it became apparent that they were pirate ships. It was Captain Korwin and his Bloody Tide. The large frigates came up near the shore and started firing their cannons at the city of Bevelle. Meanwhile, motorboats brought hundreds of pirates onto the coast and they began to march across the plains toward the Highbridge. At the entrance to the Highbridge, Setanta and Suldane reformed their ranks.

"We're not out of the woods yet, Lads!" Suldane shouted, and he took the front of the lines with his axe. Setanta walked across the ranks to review them, and as he stepped up beside his father he looked across the plains to the southeast at the edge of Macalania woods, and he saw Yuna and the elders walking across the field toward them. She walked slowly and carelessly, as gracefully as though she was walking on air. Setanta saw the faint glow about her and he knew that something had changed. He strode quickly across the field to meet her.

"Get her into the city, quickly! We don't have much time before they march on us!" Suldane called after him. Setanta reached his wife in the middle of the field, and as she stepped closer to him he felt a magical warmth emanating from her.

"Yuna! Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Yes, I am. I've come to help. Let me heal the wounded from the battle, and help the survivors in the city." Yuna implored him.

"How can you heal them? What are you saying?" Setanta asked, bewildered. After he spoke, Yuna reached out her delicate hand over a slight bruise and cuts on his upper arm, and he felt the warmth intensify, and a blue-colored aura passed between her hand and his flesh. It began to seal his cuts and alleviate the bruising on his arm. In only a few heartbeats it was healed and whole again.

"What magic is this?" Setanta asked her in wonderment.

"This is the will of the Lord." Yuna told him, and the innocence in her face assured him of the truth of it.

"It's a miracle!" Setanta cried out. He swept her up in his arms and carried her across the field, with the elders running behind him. They ran through the cheering ranks of his army, and Setanta let her down upon the Highbridge floor. Auron saw him approach and ran to embrace Yuna.

"Yuna!" He cried out. Yuna turned to him in shock and bewilderment.

"Auron!" She called back. When he reached her he wrapped his arms around her in relief.

"Where in Spira have you been?" Auron asked her.

"I… I was in Djose, with my husband… Auron, it will take a lot to explain this, but… everything will be alright!" Yuna assured him anxiously.

"Your husband?" Auron said, shaken with bewilderment. Setanta stepped forward then, unnerved by the sudden fondness that this stranger shared with his young wife.

"Is this a friend of yours, Yuna? Family perhaps?" Setanta asked her. Yuna hesitated, and did not want to speak.

"I'm her guardian. You interrupted her pilgrimage!" Auron said in visible outrage. Setanta glared hotly at him then, his face full of rage instantly.

"I didn't interrupt it; I _ended_ it. Next I'll end your life, you deviant bastard!" Setanta fumed, drawing his sword.

"No! Wait!" Yuna cried out, but Setanta lunged forward, and Auron stepped back, drawing his katana to block the swing that was coming at him. Their swords clashed and sparks flew, and the two of them stood glaring death and hatred into each other. Yuna was crying and shaking in panic, but suddenly the magic welled up in her veins, and she knew what to do. She stretched out her quivering hands, and suddenly an aura of blue light flowed from her and formed a screen between the two warriors as they parried and swung at each other. Suddenly their blades slowed and faltered, and could not penetrate the screen between them. Once they noticed it they backed away from each other. They gazed upon Yuna and saw the magic flowing from her fingertips.

"Setanta, don't hurt him! It's not his fault!" Yuna cried out desperately. Setanta stepped toward her then and sheathed his sword. Yuna let the magic dissipate, and then Auron sheathed his katana and came toward her. Suldane and some of his men came back from the front ranks to the bridge then, to see what was happening. Suldane confronted Auron again.

"What's going on here, you old deviant?" Suldane asked him antagonistically. Auron glared at the old warlord. He knew that Suldane was too big and too strong for him to challenge, but he wasn't one to suffer taunts and insults from anyone.

"I should ask you the same question, savage!" Auron replied. Suldane smiled wickedly.

"Ha! You don't know how right you are, but you will know it, when I savagely hack you apart and feed you to lupines! Before I do, tell me what the hell your problem is, old boy…" Suldane continued to prod him.

"You kidnapped her!" Auron accused him. Suldane shrugged.

"Who? You'll have to be more specific; we kidnap most of our women and God-Daughters. That's how the tribe has survived all this time. What does it matter to you anyway? Do you expect me to believe that you can satisfy a woman?" Suldane taunted him, and all his men laughed thunderously. Auron burned with fierce indignation.

"You kidnapped Yuna! Our summoner! She was the one who was meant to end Sin forever!" Auron fumed. Suldane merely smirked.

"My son will end Sin for you, so don't worry about that. We won't have to sacrifice young girls to your demon, either. So who exactly are you? Her guardian? You were the one who was going to perform the sacrifice, aye? Perhaps I should sacrifice _you_ , after all…" Suldane said.

"That's not what was going to happen! She can end Sin, and save this world!" Auron tried to refute him, but Suldane shouted in his face.

"You coward! You think saving the world is a task for virgin girls? What next? Child Crusaders? I've heard that you degenerates actually allow that lunacy! He's a demon bastard! He's a coward and a snake! Take him prisoner! I'll execute him myself after the battle!" Suldane commanded his men with hysterical fury. They immediately surrounded Auron and took his weapon, and dragged him away down the Highbridge. Yuna watched this display nervously, and said nothing until Suldane had passed her on his way back to the front lines. She spoke to Setanta then.

"Please, don't let him do it! Don't let him execute anyone! Let me talk to them, and I'll change their minds!" Yuna begged him. Setanta gazed hesitantly upon her, but finally he nodded.

"I'll speak with my father, and try to calm him down. For now stay in the city, at Yevon's headquarters, and wait until the battle is over." Setanta told her. Yuna nodded and hugged him tightly. Setanta patted her head gently, but then he slid out of her grasp and walked hurriedly to take charge of his army. The pirate horde was well on its way, and several of the war-witches had landed to accompany them. The Dark Queen and her riders continued to harass his men and shoot arrows down upon them. His men of course shot back with their rifles, but the Zu were flying overhead swiftly, and circling them like vultures awaiting a kill. Captain Korwin led the ranks of his pirates, while cannon rounds soared overhead and went barreling into the city or in front of the ranks of Setanta's army.

Setanta whistled loudly, and Brutus came running to his side. He marched in front of his men and gave them hand signs, to split the army in half and march forward across the field at a jog. He started running toward their enemies then, and the whole army charged. The Mounted Marauders sped away to prepare for a flanking maneuver, and the Devil Dogs and Red Blades split their forces and ran to both sides of the pirate horde to entrap them. Kelk Ronso brought his warriors and the Crusaders forward slowly, coming down the middle. The Cannonfire intensified, and many men fell and many buildings in the city were bombarded. It seemed that the battle would go badly for Setanta, but suddenly cannon fire came flying from the other direction; there was now crossfire from the east and west. Setanta separated himself from his men and turned to look back at Bevelle Bay. He saw two ships maneuvering swiftly across the bay; they were Al-Bhed ships. They presented their sides to the west, and fired volleys of artillery rounds over the isthmus toward the pirate ships on the western sea. Several of the pirate ships were hit, and began to sink. The others had to cease fire and begin evasive maneuvers, attempting to counter-attack this newly arrived opposition. Setanta did not know who they were or what they had come for, but he could safely assume they were aiding him, at least in the moment. He turned and sprinted to rejoin his men in the charge.

As soon as Setanta was parallel to the front ranks again, they met their enemies in battle with a bone-breaking crash. Horrific carnage ensued, but Setanta and his father forged the path ahead once again, amid cloven and bloodied foes. Chief Barbay and his men sprang upon the enemy from the opposite side of the field, and their war dogs tore into the pirate ranks. A while after they engaged the pirates, Kelk led his men against the front, and the Marauders rode around and attacked from the rear, pinning the pirates into a hopeless last stand. They fought fiercely to free themselves, and it would continue to be a hard battle.

At the edge of Macalania woods, a few journeyers appeared. It was Kimahri, Neela, Rikku and Conchubar. They surveyed the field, the bloody chaos upon it, and the crossfire of cannon rounds, along with the ruined city. It was an awe-inspiring sight, horrific yet majestic, powerful and life-changing. Nothing like it had been seen in an age. Kimahri and Neela saw their people fighting desperately on the field, and they immediately went dashing across the plains to join them. Rikku knelt helplessly beside Conchubar, overwhelmed by the sight of it all.

"What can we do? Where should we go?" She asked him in despair.

"Wait here, or else go into the city, but it will not be safe. Yuna is likely there, taking cover. I will go onto the battlefield with my people, where I am needed." Conchubar told her, and he went striding over the plains carrying his gnarled staff, headed directly into the middle of the fight. Rikku stood up with some effort and ran toward the Highbridge. When she reached it she found the ruined causeway littered with rubble and bodies. She went down the bridge toward the entry plaza of Bevelle, all the while finding no one alive to greet her. When she did reach the plaza and the entrance to Yevon Headquarters, she saw a girl and a very old man tending to wounded soldiers who were laid out across the plaza. She had seen her before; spied a glimpse of her from far away at Luca. She knew that it was Yuna. Rikku ran toward her, calling her name. Yuna turned just in time before the scrawny blonde girl crashed into her and wrapped arms around her. Yuna laughed unsteadily, not sure of what was happening.

"Hi there! Do I know you?" She asked.

"I'm your cousin, Rikku! Cid's daughter!" Rikku told her.

"Really?" Yuna said, exasperated. She hugged her cousin then, and they laughed together in relief and joy.

"I'm so glad to see you! I thought we might never meet!" Yuna said to her. Rikku smiled brightly.

"I've been looking for you for weeks now, ever since I heard you were in Luca, and I saw you there in the coliseum right before everything got chaotic. I was on the search with Kimahri and his friend, until just now when they went to help the Ronso win the battle." Rikku informed her.

"Kimahri is here? I'm so glad he's alright… I knew everyone would be worried sick, but I couldn't leave until now." Yuna said.

"It's time for payback against your kidnappers! I heard they forced you to marry one of them!" Rikku said, outraged.

"That's true, I suppose, but you don't know everything… besides, you would lose. Setanta and his father are too strong, and their army is too powerful. But I think he is the one who can defeat Sin." Yuna said.

"They haven't brainwashed you, have they?" Rikku asked her uneasily, and a light of sheer sorrow and anxiety shone in her green eyes.

"No, that's not it… it's much more than that. I'll tell you sometime. Right now we should go to Auron, and see if he's alright. Setanta's men took him to the other side of the plaza and chained him to a wagon wheel. They won't let us release him." Yuna said.

"Auron? You mean Braska's friend?" Rikku asked.

"Yes, that's him." Yuna replied, and together they walked to the west side of the plaza where a large wooden wagon was blocked in place, and Auron's arms and torso were chained thoroughly to it. He looked up at them in despair.

"Sir Auron, this is my cousin Rikku. She came here to find me! And it looks like the Al-Bhed ships are outgunning the pirates! We may win soon…" Yuna told him, hoping that it would lift his spirits. Auron nodded solemnly. Before he could speak, a female voice cried out his name from the road leading away from the plaza and into the city. A girl came rushing to meet them. It was Paine.

"Auron! What happened?" She cried out as she saw him chained to the wagon wheel. She drew her sword when she saw the guards touch the pommels of their own weapons.

"Stop, Paine! Don't do it!" Auron shouted at her.

"Is the city lost?" Paine asked him in dismay. Auron shook his head.

"No, the city is safe, but I had some disagreements with its new rulers. Don't involve yourself; I'll be fine. Were you able to stop the fires and hunt down the Black Eagles?" He asked her.

"We did everything we could, but Tidus was thrown into the crater! I need help to find him!" Paine said frantically. Auron groaned in misery. He thought they might pull through and win the day, but now everything was going wrong again. Yuna stood frozen in shock as soon as she heard the name. All of her memories of Tidus came racing back through her mind, and she felt a severe distress in her heart and in her stomach. It was sharp and sudden, in a way that she never could have prepared herself for. She realized that she still cared for him deeply.

"Sir Auron, don't worry… I'll go with her to find Tidus." Yuna said in a quivering voice.

"You can't go without me!" Rikku exclaimed desperately.

"We'll all go. I need all the help I can get!" Paine said urgently. Auron spoke then in a weary and raspy voice.

"Be careful and don't worry about me. Rescue Tidus. If I'm gone when you get back, tell him that he is the one who must defeat Jecht. Tell him not to worry about anything else. If I am killed, do not avenge me." Auron ordered her.

"You won't be harmed, Sir Auron. Setanta promised me…" Yuna assured him.

"We'll see." Auron said, accepting his fate.

"I'll be back as soon as I can!" Yuna said, and she went with Paine and Rikku down the street toward the middle of the city.

Below the city, in the dark Tidus began to stir and wake. He found himself in the abysmal and gloomy realm of the undercity. It was damp and dark, and lit only by dim scattered lanterns, seeming like faint stars in the distance of the various corridors and chambers of this dark cloister. He picked himself up from the rubble and looked out of the crater above him, seeing the daylight so far away that it was actually mortifying in a way. He had no idea how he might get back out. Occasionally he heard the sound and felt the vibration of a cannon round impacting in the city above. He finally made up his mind to start moving through this dismal realm and chose a corridor to traverse.

While he was walking through the musty halls, suddenly he saw a young boy run out from a coinciding corridor, look toward him, and then continue running around the corner.

"Hey! Wait!" Tidus shouted, and he immediately chased after the child. As he rounded the corner, he saw the boy dart around another, and he dashed toward it. When he finally made the next turn he found himself in a ruined chamber, with dim light coming from above. There was rubble and wreckage fallen everywhere from the streets above. There was a Fayth statue lying propped up against the far wall amid the rubble. It had apparently fallen from a temple above. It glowed with a faint light, and Tidus could feel ominous power pulsing from it, pervading the whole room. He walked a few steps forward, and then suddenly he saw the spectral figure of the young boy materialize and walk out of the statue. He jumped back, startled, but the phantom seemed unthreatening, and he felt no urge to flee.

"Who are you?" Tidus asked hesitantly.

"I'm one of the Fayth, but my name is not important. My temple has been ruined, and the statue is nearly broken. Summoners will not be able to find me here, if the city of Bevelle even lasts through the day. I need your help now, before it's too late…" The boy said.

"I don't know what to do… how could I help you now?" Tidus asked him hesitantly.

"There's only one thing you can do, Tidus. You have to understand who you really are, and why you're here. Then you can go on to help all of us. You have to be prepared to face your father, and defeat Sin." The boy-Fayth said wistfully.

"What are you talking about?" Tidus demanded, feeling a frightful twisting inside himself, as if whatever would be said next would somehow damage him.

"You know that's why you're here now, don't you? You were allowed to enter Spira, as your father was, to bring an end to Sin. In fact, that was the purpose behind your entire existence. We all needed you to put an end to Sin for us."

"What do you mean by _we_? How can you say something like that to me? What gives you the right to tell me my purpose in existence?" Tidus said, recoiling in dismay.

"Because you are nothing but a dream, Tidus. You yourself are a dream of the Fayth. We dreamt you up in our death-slumber, because we needed you to exist, to put an end to Sin forever." The Fayth said to him. Tidus screamed out loud. Something within him knew it was true, but he had to struggle against the realization to preserve his sense of self.

"That's crazy! You're lying to me! What makes you think you can say these things to me!" He shouted. The boy-Fayth lifted up a hand and waved it at Tidus then, and all of a sudden his body felt incredibly light, and he looked down upon his forearms and hands to see them flickering into transparent phantasms. He fell to the floor on his hands and knees then, feeling that he was weak and quivering with shock, but in reality his figure was barely able to move. It flickered several more times, and then the boy-Fayth lowered his hand, and the feeling of faintness left Tidus. Now he finally understood, and accepted his new reality. Somehow, by the mere revelation of it, his fears and worries were gusted away. He was silent for a long moment, and then he spoke in a shaky but calm voice.

"How did this happen? And why?" Tidus asked.

"You know that one thousand years ago, Zanarkand was destroyed. But it was not your Zanarkand, rather it was the real Zanarkand of Spira. That was the one we used to inhabit, before Bevelle and their machina weapons destroyed it. That night, nearly all of us were exterminated. The mass-death of that night put so much stress on the souls of the people and the fabric of Spira and the Far Plane itself… that it caused us to be trapped between worlds. We were dejected; we weren't ready to die, and we didn't want to be forgotten, so we became the Fayth, and our sadness became a collective dream. Yu Yevon tapped into that mass suffering, and used it to conjure Sin. Our dreaming has kept Sin alive as well, and given Yu all the power he needs to work his black sorcery. Now, we're tired of dreaming. We just want to sleep, even if it means that we'll be forgotten forever. That's where you come in, Tidus. You and your father… he had to come here to become Sin. He volunteered to do it, once he discovered the truth. He is not a real Spiran, he is just a dream like you. Once you defeat him in battle the cycle will be broken, and Yu Yevon will have no host to latch onto. Once he is defeated, Sin will never return, and we will fade away." The Fayth told him.

"But what about my Zanarkand? My old life? Will I ever be able to go home?" Tidus asked desperately.

"Your Zanarkand is only a dream as well. We conjured it up… the few of us who remained from Zanarkand. We were made into the Fayth, and dreamed up the city of Zanarkand from our own memories. The place that you know, everyone and everything in it, was just a dream. When we go, it will go too." The Fayth said.

"But then… what will happen to me, and to my… to Jecht?" Tidus asked in a stammer, and tears began forming in his eyes.

"You'll disappear, along with the dream Zanarkand. You will be resting with us, in the Far Plane, forever." The Fayth said solemnly.

"But… I don't want to go… I want to live! I finally have someone… something to live for now. Don't take that away from me!" Tidus shouted, and he began to feel feverish and sick.

"You've found the truth now, Tidus. You know that this is just the way that it is. All of our people are suffering. We've been suffering for a long time now. Can't you find it in you, to sacrifice something for us now? As long as you and your father continue to live in Spira, we will continue to suffer. The people of Spira will continue to suffer as well. Can't you sympathize with our pain?" The child Fayth asked him in a deep melancholy. Tidus couldn't stop himself from weeping then, but after a moment he wiped his face clear and stood up.

"You're right. I understand now. It needs to be done. I'm sorry… for being selfish." Tidus said.

"It's not your fault. It's ours… our fear and longing drove us to do it. I should be the one to apologize… and I am sorry." The boy said sincerely. His visage dimmed then, and he hung his hooded head low.

"I'm grateful… actually, I am thankful to you for what I was allowed to have, even though it can't last. It was worth it." Tidus said.

"Don't be discouraged, Tidus. It's not so bad to rest. Once our sins have been forgotten, and our souls are purified, we can finally come back fresh to be born again. That will be the awakening from our sleep, once the dreams have drifted away." The Fayth told him in consolation.

"I know… I can do this. But how, and where?" Tidus asked.

"Go to Mount Gagazet. At the foot of the mountain, beneath the bridge from the Calm Lands, you'll find a deep cavern. Go there and seek out Yojimbo the Fayth. He will teach you the final lessons you need to know, to complete your quest." The Fayth instructed him. Tidus nodded firmly with determination.

"Alright… I'll go. Now I just need to get out of here…" He said. The boy nodded, and beckoned for Tidus to follow him as he strode back out of the chamber and led him down the long corridors of the undercity.

Meanwhile, Yuna, Rikku and Paine were striding quickly across the streets above. Paine led them on the way to an old staircase, by which they might access the undercity. When they reached the dark entryway to the stair, she stopped, seeming to hesitate for a moment.

"What's wrong? Isn't this the place? Paine… are you alright?" Yuna asked her with concern.

"Yes, this is it… I never wanted to come back here again. I have to do it for him though… let's go." Paine spoke with determination. She stepped briskly forward into the archway, and went down the steps into the dimly lantern-lit realm of subterranean Bevelle.

"What's the matter with her? Do you think we should trust her?" Rikku asked suspiciously.

"I think we can… I _feel_ that we can. Somehow, I know she's an honest person. She must care for him deeply… she wants to find him badly." Yuna said intuitively. Rikku stepped closer to her.

"Can you really read people like that? I never knew you would have such a gift…" Rikku remarked in wonderment.

"I only just acquired it recently. But yes, we can trust her. Let's go…" Yuna urged her, and together they hurried to catch up with Paine in the dark corridors. They followed her rushed pace as best they could, until they came to a large chamber in the corridors. It was an underground plaza, with market stalls and dwelling places. Some people were out and about, trading their wares and performing their crafts.

"I had no idea this place existed…" Rikku said in bewilderment.

"Me neither, and I lived in Bevelle until I was seven. This is strange…" Yuna commented.

"It's not the kind of place that typical Yevonites would ever stumble into. This is where the poor, the criminals, the outcasts and excommunicated live. It's not the safest place in Bevelle, so be mindful and keep your eyes open." Paine warned them.

"Is this your home?" Yuna asked her cautiously.

"Yeah… this is where I grew up, after my parents died. Some people will recognize me… that could be good or bad. Let's keep moving. I know my way through the undercity, and the crater will be a league or two from here." Paine said, and they pressed on together. Yuna reflected silently on how disparate the lives of two people in Spira truly could be. When her father died fighting Sin, she had been taken to grow up in the quiet, gentle forests and waterfalls of Besaid. For Paine, this dark and dangerous realm had become home after her parents' deaths. It was frightful to think about. If not for Auron and Kimahri, Yuna may have met a similar fate.

They walked through the plaza and down another corridor and some descending steps. They came to a large machina door. Paine attempted to open it, but it had been sealed and locked down.

"Damn it." Paine fumed under her breath.

"What's wrong?" Yuna asked.

"We need to get through here, but the door is locked. Usually I could always unlock it, but someone has changed the codes." Paine replied in frustration.

"Here, let me give it a try." Rikku offered, and she stepped up to the terminal beside the door, and plugged in a small interface device that she carried on the bracer covering her left forearm. She ran a program to pick the code for her. After a moment, the lock was decoded and the door slid open with loud metallic rumbling.

"Good thing I ran into an Al-Bhed wiz-kid before coming down here…" Paine remarked. Rikku giggled, flattered.

"It was nothing really." She said.

"You're both Al-Bhed, aren't you?" Paine asked them as she looked curiously at Yuna.

"Well, not quite. We're cousins. She's Rikku, and my name is Yuna. My father married an Al-Bhed woman. He was resented by Yevon for doing it. My father was the Lord Braska." Yuna revealed.

"You're Yuna, Braska's daughter? How did you get here? We've been looking for you for weeks now!" Paine asked her in puzzlement.

"I was on a pilgrimage, and Tidus was one of my guardians. Things went wrong while we were at Operation Mi'ihen, and we all got separated. Now things are… complicated." Yuna said. Paine nodded.

"I was there too… that's where Tidus and Auron found me. I was wounded, and they took me to the healers. I joined up with them after that, to help find you." Paine said.

"Really? Well then, I thank you for your help. It is greatly appreciated. I'm so sorry that things have gone badly since then…" Yuna said softly. Paine shook her head firmly.

"Don't say things like that. We're here now, and we have to carry on." Paine said determinedly, and she went through the doorway and led them on through the labyrinth of the undercity. They marched onward until they finally arrived at the crater in the middle of the city. From the pyreflies drifting and swirling about, they began to see fiends manifesting and being born as they coalesced into materializing form.

"We need to hurry… the pyreflies and all the mass sorrow of this place will start conjuring some truly wicked fiends. It's not uncommon to find great fiends in the depths of the undercity." Paine warned them.

"He must be around here, right? Unless he woke up and tried to find a way out…" Rikku surmised.

"We'll see." Paine said.

The three of them made their way through the corridors surrounding the crater, and came at it from a different path. This time when they neared the crater, they saw a mass of pyreflies combining together. Suddenly a devilish fiend began to take form in front of them. It was a dark demon prince, with wide bat wings and grinning fangs, and long arms that held dark batons.

"We should turn back!" Rikku cried out.

"It's too late! Defend yourselves!" Paine shouted, and she drew her sword. The demon prince lunged forward and tried to strike her with his baton. Yuna, almost instinctively, raised a magical barrier between them. The demon could not pierce it. However, he began raising a sphere of black magic to dispel it. Rikku drew her assault weapon and fired a grenade from the attached launcher beneath it. The fiend was damaged greatly, but still continued to erode Yuna's magic. Paine lunged forward then, leaping with her sword. She dove straight at the fiend's torso and hacked downward, splitting open his chest cavity. Black bile spilled out, and the fiend collapsed and dematerialized into scattering pyreflies. Once the demon prince had fallen, the three of them regrouped.

"That was horrifying… but I can't believe it was that easy to defeat." Yuna said.

"Your magic definitely helped… it weakened him, I could tell." Paine replied.

"Well don't give me any credit…" Rikku quipped. They laughed in relief.

"That's pretty impressive, as far as machina weapons go. I would've loved to have it at Mi'ihen." Paine remarked. They resumed their search then, and as they rounded another corridor they saw a young man approaching in the distance.

"It's him!" Paine shouted, and she immediately sprinted to meet Tidus. Yuna and Rikku trailed behind her, but as soon as she reached Tidus she leapt forward to embrace him tightly. Yuna slowed to a stop when she beheld this. Suddenly she realized why Paine was so frantic to find him. She loved him too. When Tidus and Paine embraced each other they kissed passionately, and it was a long moment before they finally released one another. Yuna slowly strode up to them then.

"We finally found you! Where have you been?" Paine asked him.

"I was in the corridors… I found something. I know what I have to do now." Tidus said.

"What do you mean?" Paine asked him.

"I'll explain when we get out of here… wait a minute, is that Rikku?" Tidus asked, bewildered.

"Yep! It's me! It's been a while now, huh?" Rikku said to him.

"Wow! I never thought I'd see you again! How did you get here?" Tidus asked.

"I came looking for Yuna, and when we met on the plaza we all joined up to come search for you." Rikku told him. Tidus felt his skin tingle. He looked past them both to the girl hanging back in the shadows. She was wearing a different dress now, and since she was further behind he hadn't recognized her.

"Yuna? Is that you?" Tidus asked. She stepped forward then to greet him.

"Tidus! I'm glad you're alright. It's good to see you again." Yuna said, forcing a pleasant grin onto her fair face. Tidus was wrenched from within, and his mind was suddenly ablaze with memory. He was put in a trance then, as all the lost remembrances of their journey together came washing over his consciousness. The mere sight of her triggered such a powerful stirring emotion in him, that he could not endure it all at once. He stumbled backward, until Paine and Rikku caught hold of him and propped him up.

"What's wrong? Are you alright?" Paine asked him, deeply dismayed.

"It's ok… I'll be fine." Tidus stammered after a moment.

"Let's get him out of here, quickly!" Paine said decisively, and the other girls nodded in agreement. Rikku scanned the path for them with her assault machina, and Yuna was right behind her. Paine walked with Tidus in the rear, holding his arm securely. They made their way back through the undercity to the underground plaza where they had entered.

On the battlefield, Setanta and his men were locked in fierce combat, poised to sweep the victory yet again. The pirate ranks were dwindling, but the black magic and fierce nature of the war-witches was enough to keep the struggle from turning immediately. Some stragglers from the Black Eagle tribe came pouring back down from the Calm Lands, when their queen gathered them up and led them back onto the battlefield. She departed from them and let her war-witches guide them, while she went to enter the battle between Setanta and Captain Korwin. The Black Eagles were only a couple hundred strong then, but they were encouraged by the witches and Zu flying overhead. They soon noticed, however, that an elderly man in black robes, carrying a staff, was walking briskly toward them.

Conchubar lifted up his staff as he came within a few hundred yards of the Black Eagle horde. He saw lights flashing across the clouds and the sky then, and he could see white figures flying in the distance, approaching from out of the clouds. He spoke words of prayer and devotion then.

"I proclaim the glory of the Lord of the Age of Light! Remphan, let your majesty and might be known! Let none challenge you!" Conchubar said, and he saw two Angels dart out from the clouds then, and they soared down to the ground beside him, landing with perfect ease and grace. They were glowing with divine light, and their silvery armor and weapons shone brightly. One of them was armed with a pair of swords, the other with a longbow and quiver of golden arrows. Their winged helmets glistened in the sunlight. Conchubar raised his staff again to salute them, and they both bowed cordially to him. Together the three of them walked across the field toward their enemies, and the angels wrought quick and relentless death upon the Black Eagles, who quickly fled the fight yet again, this time never to return. The two Angels took flight again, and chased after the Zu-riding witches, shooting them down one by one, until no more trace of the Black Eagle tribe could be seen anywhere near Bevelle. The Angels then departed, and Conchubar knelt in solemn prayer.

In the middle of the battlefield, Kimahri and Neela suddenly thrust themselves among the ranks of their kindred, and made their way to the front battle lines. Kelk Ronso saw them then, and he called out to Kimahri, tossing him a Titan Lance. Kimahri caught the weapon in one hand, and with the other he threw his spear into his enemies, killing one of them instantly. Then he took hold of the lance and fought on ferociously, killing every pirate that fell within his broad reach. Biran and Yenke saw him beside them and cheered with loud laughter.

"Is that Kimahri?" Biran said.

"He is strong after all! It is good that Kimahri fights beside us at last!" Yenke said, and together they routed the enemy mercilessly.

The battle was swiftly turning in the favor of the defenders, but the enemy leadership made one final effort to prevail. The Dark Queen swooped down with her Zu and landed in the middle of the melee, nearby Setanta himself. She dismounted and drew her weapons; a tomahawk and a totemic black magic wand. She was a tall and lithe woman, with pale skin and black hair braided into long locks. She was clothed in black leather that covered her chest and a black skirt around her waist. Leather bracers and golden armbands covered her arms. Beads, amulets and magical talismans hung from her neck and covered her breasts. She strode determinedly across the plains, coming toward Setanta directly, and once she was within a hundred yards she began to dash in a remarkable sprint.

Setanta turned toward her while Brutus guarded his back, and once she was near he lunged forward and swung horizontally in a wide arc. She miraculously dashed back at just the last instant before his blade would have slid through her, and only the tip scathed her midriff. A red line of blood appeared there, but she screeched a bloodthirsty war cry and flung herself at him again, swinging her tomahawk wildly. Setanta managed to block her attack, but she was in close to him then, and his long blade was unable to maneuver an attack on her; he could only deflect her assault by swinging the blade around his back as if it were a screen, deflecting her tomahawk. She jumped onto his back then and sank her nails into his shoulder, and tried to scratch out his eyes. Setanta grabbed her other wrist before she could reach his face, and he flung her over his shoulder. The Dark Queen rolled violently over the ground and immediately sprang back to her feet. As soon as she stood upright, Setanta's blade swept through her neck, and her head sprang free. A spectacular gush of blood followed it as it rolled across the reddened grassy field.

Once they saw her dead, the Black Eagles cried out in horror and the distressed screaming of her witches was horrendous. The pirates were terrified and demoralized then, and they struggled in a panic to free themselves and flee. Captain Korwin tried to rally them but Suldane parted the ranks and appeared a few paces to his side, holding his mighty axe with one hand, just below the double-heads. Suldane glared at him with a contented and wicked smirk. Korwin turned to attack him, lunging forward with his saber. Suldane merely turned aside and the blade missed him, and in the same whirling motion he brought up his axe and swept Korwin's legs out from under him. The pirate captain laid helpless on the ground; before he could move Suldane brought the axe swinging down like a pendulum, and it sank deep into Korwin's chest, splitting his ribcage open.

All of the pirates immediately broke ranks and fled then, seeping through the pores in the Marauders' enclosure from the eastern side of the battleground. They ran back toward the eastern shore to climb into their motor boats and try to board their dwindling ships. Only a few remained, but after a final volley from the nimble and accurate Al-Bhed ships, these last remaining frigates were demolished in a blaze of cannonfire. The pirates fled in a disorganized rabble then; some by sea, others on foot made their retreat into the Macalania woods. Suldane pulled his axe free and rushed out of the clustered ranks of his men, so that he could observe the sight of his enemies driven in defeat. He laughed triumphantly.

"Hahaha! Look at the bastards run, with their tails between their legs! Whew lads! We've won the day! Hahaha! All dead bastards on the road to Hell, and screaming vagrants scattered on the wind! It sounds like a sweet Angels' choir to my ears! Haha!" He proclaimed with euphoric laughter.

"All praise the Lord!" Setanta shouted beside him, and all the men raised their weapons high in a victory salute, as they cried out in cheer. Setanta raised his sword high in one hand, rallying his men around him, and then he motioned for them all to march back to Bevelle. They took captured tribals and pirates with them, and Brutus frolicked with the other hounds and lupines as he carried the head of the Dark Queen in his maw, parading it around in front of the marching ranks.

They marched triumphantly down the causeway of the Highbridge, sounding their battle horns and cheering jubilantly. The battle for Bevelle was finally over, and the city belonged to the victors.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Remphan's Justice**

The army of Setanta marched into the plaza of Bevelle, blasting their war horns and shouting in victorious glee.

The survivors who were well enough to walk outside to meet them, cheered in relief and joy. Setanta they greeted like a conquering king, and he held his sword high, projecting an image of triumph and mastery. He wore the regal sapphire crown atop his head and with it he commanded awe and respect. He strode into the middle of the plaza then, and with everyone around him he spoke in a powerful voice.

"People of Bevelle, your city is secured and you are now liberated. You may come and go as you please, unharmed. In the years to come I will see this city rebuilt, and a new temple dedicated to the Lord Remphan. In his name I declare that Sin shall soon be undone forever!" He proclaimed. His own men cheered, but the survivors did not know how to respond. Some cheered almost involuntarily, others remained still, or muttered to each other. Setanta was not discouraged by their silence.

"In the end, all who see will believe! Until then, I ask nothing from you. I will go marching onward, to Guadosalam, to end the corrupt rule of the Maesters. For now, we will see to it that the people are cared for, and that we have provisions for the march and the battle." He announced, and then he went among his men and their chieftains to give his orders. Suldane, Barbay, Jericho and Kelk assembled before him then.

"See to your men, and bring the wounded to Yevon's old headquarters for healing. Then see to the sending of the dead. We need an accurate count of our forces, and we need to gather supplies. I need men to come with me to the harbor, to see if the two ships from the west have landed yet. I am interested to know who they are, and what led them to fight for us." Setanta said.

"Al-Bhed… more reasonable than Yevonites, but still crazy. Be careful around them, Son. They may turn on us." Suldane advised him. Setanta nodded in agreement.

"Understood. First I have to find Yuna…" Setanta said. Suldane's face lit up with a bloodthirsty pleasure then. He remembered his prisoner in the plaza.

"That reminds me… the old man." Suldane said. Setanta knew immediately what he had in mind.

"Wait Father, we don't want to damage our image with the common people." Setanta urged him.

"Who cares about 'image'? We hold the power and the favor of the Lord. That's all that matters, boy." Suldane replied indifferently.

"Still, to maintain the Lord's favor, it is proper to have a trial. I must be the one to judge him, Father." Setanta argued.

"Indeed. You realize that he wanted to have your sweet young wife killed, don't you? He was going to sacrifice her!" Suldane said, impassioned.

"Yes, I know that, and I want him to confess to it before he's judged. I want to hear him admit to what he was going to do." Setanta said firmly. Suldane's eyes were burning hotly with smoldering rage, but he calmed himself and nodded in acceptance. Setanta suddenly put his hand on his upper right arm. His wounds were burning, where the Dark Queen had scratched him.

"What's wrong, my boy?" Suldane asked him with concern.

"I think the witch queen had poison on her nails… it stings." Setanta said.

"We should find a healer, if there are any." Suldane said urgently.

"No, we should find my wife. Where is Yuna?" Setanta began to call out. He called across the plaza, until she appeared from the road leading further into the city's center. Yuna came rushing to meet him then. Setanta took her in his arms and kissed her, and they stood intimately intertwined. Tidus saw the two of them together then, as he stood between Rikku and Paine. His heart felt like it was twisting up into knots within his chest. Now that he had regained all of his memories, he found this far too difficult to watch. He began stumbling backward again and then Paine appeared in his sight, looking up at him with warmth and deep compassion in her bright red eyes.

"Are you alright? Are you sure you don't need healing?" She asked with concern. Tidus couldn't tell her the truth. He could neither forget his feelings for Yuna, nor could he erase his feelings for Paine, and he had no will to do so.

"I'll be alright… take me to Auron." Tidus asked her. Paine nodded, and quietly led him around the crowd and toward the wagon where Auron still sat in chains. Meanwhile Yuna saw the scratches on Setanta's arm.

"What happened!?" Yuna asked in dismay.

"The Dark Queen attacked me. She used poison. Can you cure it?" Setanta asked. Yuna extended her hand over the deep scratches, and closed her eyes. A blue aura appeared around her then, and blue magic flowed from her fingertips and into Setanta's skin. The dark poison began to seep out, and then his skin sealed up again. In a moment there was no evidence that he had been wounded.

"What's this?" Suldane asked as he stepped up beside his son. Conchubar came through the ranks then and met them there.

"Yuna has been given a gift from the Lord! She has the power to heal with a touch…" Setanta told his father. Suldane's eyes lit up with excited and triumphant joy.

"Did you hear that, Conchubar?" He asked gleefully.

"I did indeed, and I can see that it is true. Clearly the magic of the Lord abides with her now. He has blessed us yet again! And this means the time is drawing nigh. His age is at hand, and his blessing abound. Soon many more will be able to work such miracles, and even greater ones. Yuna, I knew that he would bless you, and make you a part of his great work. May the Lord be praised!" Conchubar said, raising his staff, and the men echoed his praise loudly all throughout the plaza.

When Tidus and Paine reached Auron, they found him sitting in silence and sulking with his head low.

"Auron! What happened?" Tidus asked him, perplexed and enraged. Auron gazed up at them and spoke softly.

"It seems that our new rulers have a serious grudge against Yevon, and everyone associated with it. Yuna's husband and father-in-law found out that I was her guardian, and they charged me with conspiring to sacrifice her for Yevon." Auron said sullenly.

"No one rules me, or you, old man. Let's go now, and get out of here. The pilgrimage is obviously over with. We have another mission, don't we?" Tidus said.

"I do… and perhaps you do too. But you'll be hard-pressed to get me free. And you don't want any disagreement with these tribal warriors. They're not playing around…" Auron said. Just then the ranks parted and Setanta came striding toward them, with Suldane and Conchubar beside him and Yuna trailing quietly behind him.

"You've got that right, old man. The days of Yevon and their schemes are over. Now it's time for me to decide what to do with you. My wife insists that I should spare your life. Should I?" Setanta asked as he stood towering before Auron, indifferent to Tidus, Paine and Rikku as they all glared at him with anger and resentment. Auron chuckled then.

"Spare my _life_? If only you could. I'm on a mission, young warrior, and it is my last journey here in Spira. I'm only here to defeat Sin. After that, my life will be over." Auron assured him. Setanta stared at him in contemplation and curiosity.

"And you think that Yevon is the way to accomplish that?" Setanta asked him. Auron shook his head.

"No. It is not. It never was. And I have known that for some time now. Yuna had a chance to break the cycle… but now we'll see, what you and your army can do."

"I can do all things through the Lord, I have faith in that. The question now, is what shall I do with you? Can you be trusted to do what is right and necessary to defeat Sin? Will my wife be safe if you are released?" Setanta asked him pointedly.

"Yes, of course." Auron said.

"Very well then. I will draft you into my army, and you will serve in my campaign to destroy Sin forever. That will be your atonement, and we'll consider your crimes forgiven." Setanta said decisively, and he ordered his men to release Auron from bondage. Auron stood up then, and Suldane glared at him from a few feet away. The old warrior said nothing, however, and turned to stride away, following Setanta back across the plaza. Yuna lingered there, looking upon him sympathetically. She stepped slowly to meet him.

"I'm sorry for everything that happened, Sir Auron. I know that you had the best intentions at heart..."

"I did, but it was no excuse… I should have told you all from the beginning, but I knew you wouldn't believe me until you had seen the truth about Yevon for yourselves. I'm sorry for what happened to Braska and Jecht. I owe you both a debt that can't be repaid. The Eternal Calm will have to be my payment, for what we did back then." Auron said dutifully.

"They made their choices, didn't they?" Tidus said, breaking his silence. Auron turned to him and nodded.

"Of course. And I played my own part in the journey. I even tried to dissuade them. Perhaps it has all come to this for a reason." Auron surmised.

"I think so." Tidus said.

"Do you think that what happened to us, was for a greater purpose?" Yuna asked Tidus then, and there was a melancholy glimmer in her soft eyes. Tidus looked upon her with apparent sorrow, and yet with composure.

"Yeah… I do. I may not like it, but I think it was meant to be." Tidus said to her. Yuna nodded slowly in acceptance.

"Yes… I agree." She said. After a moment of silence passed between them all, she asked him; "So what will you do now?"

"I'm going away to Mount Gagazet. There's a cave there waiting for me. I'm sorry, but I'm done with Spira." Tidus said to her. Yuna nodded solemnly, doing her best to hide her emotions. Her expression was blank.

"I understand. My place is with my husband. I'm going with him to defeat Sin. Perhaps we'll see you again someday, if you ever come out of hiding." Yuna said dimly.

"I don't think so. Farewell." Tidus said, and he waved once to her before turning to walk away with Paine by his side. Yuna quivered then, and her eyes dampened. She wiped her face quickly and then turned immediately to follow after Setanta.

"Yunie! Wait up!" Rikku cried as she ran after her. Auron was left standing alone at the edge of the plaza. He shook his head with a faint smirk.

"Jecht… Braska… I did what I could. It's all up to them now. I hope you can forgive me…" He said wearily, and then he strode along toward the ranks of Setanta's army that were heading for the edge of the Highbridge.

Yuna and Rikku walked together across the plaza until suddenly they saw two Ronso coming toward them, and a deep voice called out to them. Yuna immediately recognized Kimahri as she turned her gaze to him, and he came rushing to embrace her. Yuna stepped to him and wrapped her arms around the big Ronso warrior.

"Kimahri! I'm so glad you're safe! I hoped you would find me soon!" Yuna said.

"Kimahri has searched for Yuna many days now. Seeing you again brings much relief and joy… I will not leave your side again." The Ronso warrior said.

"Thank the Lord… come with me, Kimahri, and introduce me to your friend…" Yuna implored him, and they walked together as a group through the soldiers scattered throughout the plaza. Soon they came to the warrior's huddle in the middle of the army, where Setanta, his father, the Shaman and the other chiefs were gathered to discuss their next move. The Al-Bhed captains had arrived as well and were escorted into the circle. Kern was there, and along with him was a young Al-Bhed man in a green and gray jumpsuit, with spiky blonde hair and an eye-patch over one eye. He was handsome and youthful, and spoke with confidence.

"You boys had quite a party here, it seems. I'm glad we showed up right before the last call!" He said as he strode into the circle among them.

"And I'm glad you could make it. Perhaps introductions are in order? My name is Setanta. I command these warriors." Setanta said to him.

"Glad to meet you. Call me Gippal." The boy said. Setanta nodded and extended his hand, and they both shook vigorously.

"So, why have you come?" Setanta asked.

"Kern here asked me to come back with him. Auron asked him to transport some survivors out of the city and return with fighting men. So here we are. Now then, what's the plan for the city? What are you going to do with Bevelle and her people?" Gippal asked.

"I've liberated the city. In time we'll return to build a great temple here. Bevelle will become the capitol that Spira deserves, but for now we must move on. We have to conquer Guadosalam next, and punish the Maesters. When that is done, we move on Sin next." Setanta told him.

"That sounds ambitious… what makes you think you can face off against Sin without summoners? We've already tried it once, not too long ago. I'm sure you heard how it worked out." Gippal said incredulously.

"Oh yes, I'm well aware. We have something that you didn't." Setanta replied confidently.

"Really? What's that?" Gippal asked him.

"The blessing of our Lord Remphan!" Setanta called, raising his voice and lifting his sword high. His men echoed his words with a roar. Gippal staggered back in shock, and then faced Setanta with a grin once his men had settled down again.

"Ha! Ok… that sounds interesting. I guess I can leave you to it then." He said in amusement. Setanta looked upon him with disdain.

"While you do what? Sit here and wait?" Setanta asked him. Gippal shrugged.

"Hey don't get me wrong; I'd love to help you out if I thought you stood a fraction of a chance." Gippal said.

"We've already conquered insurmountable odds. We liberated a city that was all but lost." Setanta argued.

"Yeah sure, with the help of our cannonfire."

"Of course; and don't you find something fortuitous in that? It happened by no direct plan on our part, yet here we are." Setanta said.

"Sure, but it's gonna take more than a little luck and a few cannons to bring down Sin. It'll take more than that just to conquer Guadosalam, in fact." Gippal reasoned.

"So then we'll take a lot of cannons. Do you really just want to wait around while Sin has its way with Spira? And would you want the Guado to inherit rule over the world even if Sin were gone? Surely you know better." Setanta argued. Gippal nodded slowly.

"I feel what you're saying… and I'd love to work with you. If you'll have my crew along, we'll go with you to take over Guadosalam. We'll see how we feel after that." Gippal agreed.

"Fair enough. I welcome you into our war party." Setanta said, extending his hand. Gippal shook with him, and then Setanta turned back to his fellow chieftains. Jericho spoke up then.

"We've reviewed our ranks. By everyone's count, we've got about a thousand warriors. Certainly not more than that. With these newcomers, we may have eleven-hundred to twelve-hundred. " He reported. Setanta nodded, somewhat grimly.

"I see. Let's discuss our tactics and avenue of attack then." He said. Kelk Ronso spoke up to advise him.

"The Guado can muster about five hundred troops, but their real strength is their black magic. They could potentially conjure up an entire legion of fiends." Kelk said.

"He's right… their demon-conjurers will make it a hard fight. Beyond that, we don't know how many Yevonite troops fled with the Maesters. We could be facing multiple fronts." Suldane surmised.

"Indeed… well then, we'll have to show them all why I am called the 'devil killer'. Do we have enough chocobos left for a strong flanking force?" Setanta asked Jericho.

"No. I lost a lot of good men and their birds in that battle. The Crusaders didn't have more than a couple squads, and they're greatly diminished. We can field a hundred riders or so. Unless we get more birds, and some men willing to ride them, we're not going to be very effective at anything other than skirmishing." Jericho admitted. Setanta nodded.

"Kelk, can you send for more Ronso warriors to join us?" Setanta asked the old Ronso. Kelk shook his head.

"I brought all the fighters we could spare. The rest must care for the young and old, and guard our mountain home." Kelk said. Chief Barbay spoke next.

"We lost a lot of our hounds in the battle. Some good men too. One of my strongest lupines was killed. I still have old Davs, but he's wounded and tired. I could send some men back to bring us the young war-pups, but it would take days for them to get back from our tribal territory." Barbay said.

"Tell me about the prisoners of war." Setanta asked next.

"We've got more than a hundred from the Black Eagle tribe, and several dozen of the pirates who were too badly wounded to escape. We should execute them; there's no sense in leaving them behind, and we can't spare men to guard them. If we cut them loose they'll just resort to banditry." Suldane answered grimly.

"And what do you think, Conchubar?" Setanta asked the old shaman. The wizened old man had a sublime countenance, untroubled, and quite out of place among the drab dreariness of the other battle-worn warriors. He spoke with genuine compassion and yet with zeal and confidence.

"Much can be saved, with the Lord's mercy and benefaction. Take me to the prisoners, and perhaps some of them may be willing to convert now. As for the coming battle, indeed we face dire odds, and they should not be underestimated. Yet you should have confidence in your own abilities and what the Lord has already bestowed upon you. You have achieved much already. Don't let it make a brash fool of you. You should consider the possibility that old enemies may become new friends. The prisoners could be reformed and fitted for the fight, with you as their new master." Conchubar advised. Setanta nodded respectfully.

"I'll decide after I've seen them for myself. Let's get supplies gathered, find cannons and ammunition that can be easily moved, and let's prepare to march. We'll camp in Macalania just out of reach of the Thunder Plains. Make haste, gentlemen. I don't want to give the enemy any more time to prepare or send out scouts to spy on us." Setanta ordered, and then they all dispersed. As soon as he turned to leave them, Yuna rushed up close to him and immediately hugged him, burying her face in the deep cleft of his muscular chest.

"Are you alright, Love?" He asked her gently as he caressed her head and shoulders, and stroked her hair.

"I'm just glad that you made it through everything alright. Do we really have to go to Guadosalam so soon?" She asked.

"Yes, it's imperative. We can't afford to lose any time. We have to strike hard and fast, while we have everyone together and willing to fight. There's no telling when Sin may strike again, and we have to prepare to face it. We can't do that until the other threats to Spira and to us, are eliminated." Setanta replied intently.

"I can help, with those who need healing. I'll do everything I can." Yuna volunteered.

"I'm glad, My Love. You've been more than a blessing to us. You're like an Angel sent from the Lord himself." Setanta said with sincere ardency, and he kissed her head affectionately. They walked hand in hand, until they reached the entrance to the Yevon Headquarters where the wounded were huddled in their miserable state. Yuna released Setanta's big, strong hand then, and went about using her magic gifts to restore the people's wellbeing and soothe their pains. Setanta saw the captured prisoners sitting in chains or bound with ropes, and guarded by Ronso braves and Crusaders. He walked around them and observed them. Then suddenly he spotted a familiar face; it was the war-witch named Raven, the young woman whom he had met during the tribal rally in his father's yurt, where she had spurned his offer of an alliance. He stepped confidently in front of her, and she slowly turned her head up to face him with a somber gaze.

"Raven. I never imagined that you would have been taken alive. So tell me now, what do you think of this army and of our Lord's providence?" Setanta asked her. The witch spoke softly and with a defeated tone.

"I saw what your shaman did on the battlefield. The Angels he called down were so powerful that all of our warriors were driven in defeat. I never intended to be captured, but I wasn't able to resist. Now I can see that you are the strongest of us, and I should not have doubted you. I don't know what you plan to do with us, but I surrender myself. Now that our queen is dead, the tribe is finished. Most of our warriors are gone, and the rest of our people will likely be displaced by other tribes now. I don't have anything left to live for." Raven said gloomily.

"Perhaps you do. Since you fought against us, I'm not eager to forgive you or let you loose. But if you choose to submit to ritual purification and convert to our covenant, then I may be able to trust you." Setanta offered. Raven looked at him in bewilderment.

"Why would you offer me another chance?" she asked in disbelief.

"I need more warriors, to be honest. But apart from that, I think the Lord has more in store for you. I think your life is not over yet. You still survive, after all. I'm not going to try to persuade you, but I'll give you the choice now. If you and your comrades convert now, we'll let you join us in our march against Guadosalam, and you must swear to help us fight against Sin. After all, I may need the use of your birds in the final battle against Sin." Setanta told her candidly. Raven nodded in acquiescence.

"Very well… I admit that your aims are best, and your Archangel is strongest, and I'll willingly join your covenant. The rest of my people will have to be asked individually. Black Eagles are free people, and devoted to our Gods. Most will not convert, I think." Raven said.

"Fair enough. Those who wish may join, the rest will be imprisoned here and dealt with later." Setanta determined, and he turned to Conchubar as the old shaman stepped to his side.

"Conchubar, convert this woman and all the others who willingly join her. My men and I will help with the ritual as needed. Yuna can heal those who choose to join the covenant." Setanta said. The old shaman went through the rows of sitting prisoners, inspecting them and speaking with them as he wished, and deciding who to convert. They all seemed to share the smitten defeat of their captured leader, Raven. Setanta ordered his men to gather all of them who wished to convert and lead them along behind his army. Most of the Black Eagles chose to convert. A few of the pirates did as well. By now his ragtag band was smattered with representatives from nearly all of Spira. It was fast becoming a world army. Setanta watched them all as they marched out of the High Bridge and across the plains, following the road into the enchanted Macalania woods. His army had soon departed from Bevelle. Auron went striding along with his new comrades then, and Tidus and Paine followed behind him. Before they could leave they heard a voice calling after them. They saw Mino come walking quickly toward them then. He slowed to a stop when he reached them and bowed respectfully.

"Sir Auron, I've come to ask if you will still be needing my services in your journey." He asked, but his tone carried a hint of reluctance, as if he wished to be relieved of his duties. Auron detected it, and decided to release the old healer.

"We appreciate the offer, but we have Lady Yuna with us now. She can tend to the wounded. You should stay with your wife, Mino." Auron told him. Mino nodded, trying not to look overly gladdened by this decision.

"Thank you, Sir Auron! I will never forget you! I wish you the best of luck in your journey! May Yevon bless you!" Mino said graciously. Auron merely bowed his head cordially, and then he turned and walked away down the Highbridge. Paine and Tidus walked after him, but Mino interrupted them too.

"Tidus and Paine! I won't forget about you two. From this day on, I will tell everyone I meet about you. I will tell them that it was the two of you who saved Bevelle and rescued the survivors! May your path be blessed!" He said. He took hold of Paine's hand and shook it gently. He did not know that his words had touched her heart, and given her great peace. Tidus merely smiled and patted Mino on the shoulder once.

"Take it easy, old man. Take care of your wife. The Calm will be here soon." He said confidently. Paine smiled warmly, but said nothing. She was too overwhelmed with happiness. She and Tidus walked away then, striding across the Highbridge alone.

"How are you doing?" Tidus asked her, aware that something peculiar had come over her.

"I'm alright. I've done my good deed. Now we can leave… and never come back!" Paine said, turning to him with an exuberant smile. Tidus looked upon her with bewilderment.

"You're done with the world now?" He asked.

"Yes! Let's disappear together, forever!" She affirmed happily. They walked together then, almost in a joyful skip, following Auron at their own leisure.

On the plains outside of the High Bridge, Setanta surveyed his forces once more, and saw the various parties accompanying him trailing in the rear. He saw Yuna walking slowly behind him with Brutus striding briskly around her and Conchubar and Suldane by her side. Her friends, Kimahri, Neela and Rikku followed closely behind them. Setanta waited for her, and took her hand as they walked together into the woods.

"Have you ever walked in these woods before?" Setanta asked her, as he noticed her charmed gaze drifting across their surroundings.

"A few times, when I was very young, before father left on his pilgrimage." Yuna replied, steeped in nostalgia.

They strode under the blue and glistening canopy of the crystal-bedecked trees and around the vivid shrubs and undergrowth of the forest. Evening was descending as the sun began to set, and the moon was rising full and high over the woods. The soldiers in front of them paved a pathway through the thick of the forest, while Barbay and Jericho selected scattered glades to set up camp for the troops. They made their tents and campfires and laid out bedrolls and sleeping bags. Chief Barbay and his men nursed their warhounds, and a few played with their dogs in the forest. Then suddenly they discovered a long-reaching glen, and they gave out excited shouts.

Setanta looked to Yuna with an expression of warm amusement, and together they rushed quickly to see what the others were shouting about. As they stepped out of the last copse of trees between them they saw the glen. It was covered in glorious, glistening flowers, and the dew drops scattered throughout it glistened like diamonds in the moonlight. A gentle little river flowed along the side of the glen, full of sparkling water. The men sprinted and dashed and played with their hounds, and Setanta laughed merrily then as he and Brutus sprang out across the short soft grasses and scattered flowers. Red Blade men and Devil Dogs wrestled each other in the stream and waved their torches, and sounded their horns loudly as they sang songs of battle to lift their spirits for the next morning. They threw balls and wooden boomerangs for their hounds to chase and retrieve.

Yuna stood watching them, giggling and laughing at this display. It was as if they were boys again. The magic of the woods had changed their hearts, or perhaps simply released something pent up within them. She was touched deeply to see Setanta and Brutus at play together and with their comrades, laughing, singing and joking. No one could tell from the sound or even from a glance that it was a war party. Yuna watched them for a long while, then suddenly Suldane stepped past her, laughing heartily as he ran in to join them. Conchubar stood beside her then, chuckling. He stepped into the glen shortly after, singing in a strikingly graceful baritone voice. Yuna laughed out loud, and watched them for a long time. Finally she turned and strode back into the forest pathways. She knew that Kimahri was nearby, and Rikku and Neela were with him, keeping an eye on her.

Yuna felt as though somehow she was drawn to explore the woods. She walked along the road with her friends following quietly behind her.

Meanwhile Tidus and Paine were still striding hand-in-hand on the fringes of the forest. They were about to take the road toward the Calm Lands, when Tidus came to a stop, tugging Paine closer to him. He held both of her hands in his then, and smiled into her warm eyes. She was full of love and lively energy, and he could sense it flowing from her skin into his own. He didn't want to leave her then, but he felt that he needed to see his friends once more.

"I need to say goodbye to Yuna and Auron before we go. Is that alright?" Tidus asked her. Paine nodded firmly.

"Of course." She said generously. Tidus nodded, and kissed her on the cheek before he released her and turned back on the road into the woods. Paine waited for him there at the bottom of the hill below the entrance to the Calm Lands.

Tidus and Yuna were striding through the woods then, each on their own path but drawn closer together, as if by the whims of their spirits. Tidus finally came to a glade where a deep pool surrounded a large oak tree, and the full moon was rising up above it and shining silver light upon the water. As he stood there on the shore he heard soft footsteps nearby, and turned to see that it was Yuna. She waved to him shyly, and he raised his hand to wave once to her. Yuna turned to her friends then.

"Can I be alone just for a moment? I promise I won't go far." She said. Kimahri nodded solemnly, and Rikku and Neela both waved and then turned back toward the campsite. Yuna strode slowly toward Tidus then, and the two of them were alone together in the soft sands by the shallows of the pool.

"I thought I would never see you again. I'm glad you came." Yuna said gently.

"I couldn't stay away. I had to see you one more time." He admitted. Yuna nodded, and turned her gaze down upon the reflection of the moon in the waters. She was quiet for a while, but eventually she spoke.

"Now that the pilgrimage is over, we can be honest with each other, can't we?" Yuna asked him.

"Yeah." Tidus replied.

"Can I admit something to you?" She asked. A feeling of intense dread sprang into his stomach, but almost instinctively he agreed.

"Sure…" Tidus said.

"I fell in love with you on the way to Kilika. Maybe before then, actually. I think it may have been the day we met… maybe even at first sight. And I still love you now…" Yuna told him. It was hard for him to speak, but Tidus forced the words out;

"I love you, too. It happened when I saw that you came to find me below Bevelle. As soon as I remembered you, all of the memories and emotions from the pilgrimage came back to me at once, and the feeling that came out of them all was love. I fell in love with you then, as soon as I saw you." Tidus admitted. Yuna gazed up at him then, and her expression was hard to read; there was a faint smile resting on the edges of her mouth. Her eyes were misty and bright.

"I'm glad. But I'm also sad. I'm still in love with you, but I couldn't help falling in love with Setanta. The feelings I have toward both of you are too strong to ignore, or forget, even though they are opposite to each other. The heart is a mystery. Even our own heart betrays us." Yuna said.

"That's true… it happened to me too. I fell in love with Paine while we were fighting together in Bevelle. She never left my side… she is brave, and kind, in a way that I never saw before until I remembered you. Now I can't help it… I still love her, too." Tidus said.

"I see… you should go with her then, and I will stay with Setanta. We shouldn't be cruel to either of them. They don't deserve it." Yuna concluded.

"No… they don't. He seems like a good man. Is he?" Tidus asked her, unable to hide his concern.

"Yes, he is. He's brave, and kind, just like your Paine. He fights with no fear, and no regrets… and he is determined to save Spira no matter what." Yuna said reverently.

"That's good. And he loves you?" He asked.

"Yes, I believe he really does. His heart is very sincere." Yuna answered confidently.

"Alright… then do we say goodbye now?" Tidus asked, sullen despite his efforts to remain composed.

"I suppose. It's nice to be together here, don't you think?" Yuna said, reluctant to part ways, even though she knew it was inevitable.

"Of course it is. But I don't want to make you sad." He said woefully.

"Then what should we do?" She asked.

"I don't know. There's not much that I can do now. Either way, if I go with you or with Paine, both of you will lose me." He said. Yuna's expression was puzzled.

"What do you mean?" She asked him.

"When I fell below the city of Bevelle, I saw the Fayth of the temple there. He told me that everything I am is just an illusion. I was sent here by the Fayth themselves, to bring an end to Sin. Once I do, then Jecht, Auron and even myself, will disappear. We don't belong in this world anymore, and we can't stay." He revealed. Yuna shifted in distress, unable to speak or face him. She gazed into the water again. Tidus lowered his eyes as well, in melancholy. He knew that anything he did from then on was only another step toward the end, and he could stay with no one in this world. He was practically a ghost walking in a twilit land. He passed along others on the way and seemed to interact with them, yet his presence was faded now that he knew his own fate.

"I can't believe they would be so cruel." Yuna said finally, gasping heavily while two tears fell from her eyes. Tidus reached out and held her by the arms then, and wiped her face gently.

"They've suffered for long enough. I'll do what I have to do. I can't make this easier for you, or for Paine. I don't have the strength to tell her, and I don't want to miss any time together with her. She's suffered more than most, and I owe her. Please share the Calm with Setanta, and live the life you deserved to live… the one Braska wanted to give you." Tidus told her firmly. Yuna wept more, yet she grinned with a soft laugh.

"And the life that Jecht wanted for us all?" She said. Tidus grinned faintly, but he still couldn't forgive his father.

"I'm sure he did. So grant his wish. I have to go…" he said.

"Alright." Yuna said, but before she let him leave, she stepped close to him and leaned up to kiss his lips. Tidus was caught breathless in that moment, and when she released him he held onto her and breathed in the scent of her hair and breath.

"I love you." Yuna whispered.

"I love you." He replied softly.

They finally parted, and Tidus strode away into the woods, leaving Yuna to herself. She wept freely then, and sat in the shallow water alone. Only Kimahri watched silently from amongst the trees, and he never spoke of Yuna's crying to anyone. After a long moment he went to pick her up and carry her back to the camp. Yuna was too exhausted by her sorrow to protest.

Tidus went through the woods until he reached the road, and there he saw Auron waiting for him.

"How did you find me here, old man?" Tidus asked, perplexed.

"I saw you earlier with Paine, and then I saw you go into the glade. You went to see Yuna, didn't you?" Auron asked.

"Yeah. She wasn't happy." Tidus said.

"I bet not. She was very fond of you." Auron said.

"I know. My memory came back when I saw her." Tidus informed him.

"You're leaving anyway? Why?" Auron asked.

"I've got my own mission now. There's more I have to know before I can face my old man, and destroy Sin." Tidus said stolidly, with no apologies. Auron cocked his head in curiosity, but then he simply nodded.

"I see. So then you'll follow through after all. That's good. But what did you tell Yuna? What will you tell Paine?" Auron asked.

"I told Yuna the truth. I'll tell Paine when I can." Tidus replied.

"Alright." Auron said. Tidus met his gaze for a moment, unsure of how to feel about their parting. In a way he resented Auron, but simultaneously he pitied him.

"Goodbye, and good luck old man. I'll see you on the other side." Tidus said, and he turned to leave. Auron spoke once more to him before he walked away.

"When you see Jecht, don't be too hard on him. He was in the same situation that you're in now. There was no other way out." Auron said. Tidus merely nodded, and then he strode away on the road to the Calm Lands.

In the campsite Kimahri carried Yuna quietly to Setanta's tent and laid her on a cot inside, and she immediately fell asleep. Setanta and his men came laughing from the glen, and began to settle down in the camp. Setanta went to his tent and found Yuna resting there. He entered quietly and looked down over her while she slept on the cot. Even in her sleep, he could see that she was deeply troubled; she looked exhausted in the way that she was sprawled across the cot with her blanket flung over her, and her face appeared deeply troubled. Setanta watched her sleep for a while, holding her hand gently. Finally he laid his bedroll on the floor and laid down, with Brutus curled up beside him.

The next day, at dawn the army awoke from their sleep and gathered on the road. Setanta got up early and gave his orders, then he returned to his tent and waited for Yuna to wake up. When she started to stir he took hold of her hand. Yuna rubbed her face with her other hand and then gazed up at him.

"Is it morning already?" She asked.

"Yes. It's time to go." Setanta replied. She stretched and rolled from side to side, trying to make herself ready to get up.

"What's wrong, Yuna?" Setanta asked her.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You tossed and turned all night, and I heard you mumbling in your sleep. You looked like you were upset." Setanta said. Yuna sighed. She had learned from her time among the Red Blades, that they never told a lie about anything, no matter what.

"I'll be alright." She said.

"Sure… but what is it?" Setanta asked again.

"Ask me again sometime… and remind me that I have something important to tell you." She said gently, hoping that it would be enough to stall him from further prying. She didn't want to tell him anything that would upset him before the battle.

"Alright Precious. Get yourself something to eat and drink, and then get ready. You'll be riding in the wagons with Conchubar and the elders. I'm going to lead the march onto the Thunder Plains. I'll see you afterward, in Guadosalam." He assured her confidently. Yuna nodded and forced herself to smile.

"I'll see you there, My Love." She said. Setanta leaned down to kiss her, and then he stepped out of the tent.

The army went marching onward, shaking the forest and rumbling out onto the dark plains outside of Guadosalam, that ancient capitol of the Guado. Setanta brought his Red Blade warriors out to the forefront, blasting their horns and waving banners with red and green streamers fluttering on the wind. The storm clouds overhead were burgeoning with low rolling thunder and faint flashes of cloudborne lightning. They reached the middle of the Thunder Plains, nearby the lakeside therein, and came to a halt. They could see movement in the distance. There was another army assembled to the south, in front of the gates to Guadosalam. Setanta observed their movement, and he could see a small group of Guado troops and Yevon soldiers coming toward him, holding up a white flag on a tall pole.

"Look at that! They're surrendering already!" Suldane said with a laugh, and his men roared in amusement and glee.

"Let me at least hear what they have to say." Setanta said, motioning for them all to settle down. He saw the party drawing closer, and Seymour Guado was among them. He was wearing a large bracer to cover his forearm, which Setanta had shot during their first meeting. There was a grim look upon his Guado features. He seemed infuriated by the mere sight of Setanta. Once he finally reached them he ordered his men to stand down, and stepped up in front of Setanta and the Red Blades.

"I have come to negotiate terms for the peaceful disbandment of this campaign you have launched against Guadosalam." Seymour said as soon as he stood before Setanta. Suldane chuckled, and spoke up first.

"You've come to present your belly, like a whipped dog!" Suldane said, and all his men laughed behind him. Seymour grimaced in utter disdain.

"I see you're a spirited bunch. Perhaps wealth and treasure will persuade you? If not, I'm prepared to write a treaty to the mutual benefit of us both in the future…" Seymour continued pointedly.

"That's not going to happen, unless you're willing to surrender yourself and the other maesters immediately, as the first stipulation of the _treaty_." Setanta said firmly. Seymour smirked, his distaste brimming over.

"You'll have to pardon me if I'm not especially amenable to such conditions. For what purpose should we surrender ourselves into your custody?" He asked.

"So we can collect your heads…" Suldane said lowly, and his men chuckled.

"You'll be put on trial and sentenced according to your crimes against the people of Spira." Setanta said, speaking over his father. Seymour smirked wider.

"I see… and who would be the judge then? You, perhaps?" He asked. Setanta nodded with unyielding resolve.

"That's right. You and the other maesters will answer for misleading the people and sacrificing them in your schemes. You'll confess that you perpetuated a lie, that has killed millions. You'll confess your roles in a conspiracy to kill millions more. Then you'll be executed." Setanta told him. Seymour's face jerked tensely to the side, and he responded with a snap.

"If only you knew the half of it, tribal!" He said with a high-pitched laugh.

"Oh, I think I know enough. So what do you say?" Setanta asked.

"You can have Maester Kinoc if you agree to let me stay in Guadosalam under an independent government." Seymour bargained. Setanta shook his head immediately.

"You're the worst of the Maesters, from everything I've heard, and I can tell that you've only got ill-intentions for Spira. You're the last man I would ever choose to set free. Speaking of which, where are the other Maesters?" Setanta demanded.

"Well, Maester Kinoc is temporarily indisposed, and Maester Mika is permanently indisposed." Seymour answered with a wicked grin. Setanta scoffed heatedly.

"No one left to betray but each other, right? It's fitting, really. I should have expected as much from you deviants. Whatever. This is not a negotiation; your sentence is death. You can take it like a man, or drag the rest of your people down with you. I don't care either way. If they summon devils on your behalf, then I'll hack my way through them all to get to you. Now decide!" Setanta commanded him. Seymour shrugged with feigned indifference.

"If you can't offer any better terms than that, then I suppose I have no choice." He said. Suldane stepped forth then.

"I have an offer for you Guado, if you want to make a public display for all the troops, yours and ours…" He began, but Setanta interrupted him.

"Father, please! I'm trying to run a serious campaign here!" He said. Immediately the whole army erupted in laughter. This din of laughter and open mockery of the Guado did not abate. Seymour turned away with indignant outrage, and stormed across the plains with his entourage until they were back at the front lines of the Guado and Yevonite forces. It appeared that they had over fifteen-hundred soldiers arrayed outside of the city.

"I'm so glad he didn't surrender… it would have been utterly boring, and my axe is thirsty for Guado blood!" Suldane said eagerly.

"It'll have to cut through a lot of fiends before it ever reaches one of them." Setanta said, and he drew his sword and then turned to his men. "I don't know what kind of devils they can conjure, but I'm sure it will run the gamut. We've trained for this in the past, gentlemen. You know what to do. Now, let's march!" Setanta ordered, and his men sounded their horns and began to stride forth. They passed by the shores of the lake and saw the enemy army more clearly as they drew closer to it. They saw a wagon rolled out in front of the enemy then, with Maester Kinoc chained to a post on top of it. Seymour was standing behind it. With a wave of his arm, he gave the command for one of the Yevon troops to execute Kinoc by shooting him in the back. Kinoc's body went loose and he slumped over. As soon as he was dead, the Guado troops began conjuring fiends up through a dark mist that was cast over them. In a very short time, hundreds of fiends began to spring forth out of the black magic veil, and soon there were thousands.

"Fight hard lads! This is it!" Setanta shouted, and he led the charge. Fiends of various kinds and powers came rushing headlong at them. Lupines, Bhairavas and Drakes came at them, followed by many more. Setanta and his men set to slaying them, but it soon became a hard battle. To the right, Suldane began to break through with several squads of men following him, but the fiends filled in behind them and they were separated from the army. Biran and Yenke followed after him with some Ronso warriors, but they were likewise split from the greater ranks. Raven and her Black Eagle comrades kept the right front moving forward. To the left, Auron, Gippal and Kern began surging forward. Setanta found that he was holding the center with Kelk, Jericho and Barbay. Then suddenly they saw the appearance of a great fiend on the battlefield. It was a giant Behemoth, and it came charging through the lesser fiends, crushing them under its massive paws. Setanta could see the horrific titan-fiend barreling toward the center of his army, indeed almost toward himself.

"Get ready!" Setanta roared. His men immediately took positions in the fiend's path, some of them kneeling down while others stood together. They turned their shields to face upward toward the sky, effectively forming a series of steps. Then they all began chanting loudly: "Setanta! Setanta! The devil-killer! Setanta! Setanta! The devil-killer!"

The Behemoth came within a hundred yards, and then Setanta lunged into action. He sprinted to the first step and sprang from it to the next, and then from the final step he leapt high and far into the air with his sword ready. He flew just to the side of the fiend's gaping mouth and sliced into its neck and shoulder, where he landed and then rebounded off of the creature's body. His blade cut the arteries of the Behemoth and sprayed its dark blood out like a fountain. The creature stumbled and crashed, sliding across the ground in front of his men. Setanta landed on his feet as agilely as if he were a floating angel, and for that moment the entire field was quiet, all their eyes upon him. Then suddenly his men cheered aloud, and his whole army released a great din of encouragement and vigor. They plunged wholesale into battle then, and hacked their way through the fiends until they came into a melee with the Guado troops and Yevon soldiers.

Brutus came dashing past him then, and led a pack of lupines to attack the Guado and break their front lines. The powerful black hound tore through them with his maw full of glistening white fangs, and Setanta came into their ranks right behind his hound, hacking and cleaving them before they could defend themselves. Elsewhere, Suldane and Yenke led their fighters through the Yevonite ranks, smashing them open so that more tribal warriors could get through. Seymour could see that he was losing the fight badly, and it would not be long before these ferocious tribal warriors had broken through to the city itself. He could see Setanta eviscerating the ranks of his men, and coming dead-on toward him. Seymour was armed with his red dragon wand in his left hand, and a long, curved scimitar in his right hand. He lifted the wand up above his head and began to whirl it around, preparing to summon his most powerful Aeon.

He was nearly done with the summoning, when suddenly he saw a horrendous creature leap through the ranks of his men. It was a black lupine with blazing red eyes and wide open jaws, that came flying toward him. Brutus clamped his jaws shut on Seymour's wand, and it was instantly snapped in half and splintered on the end. The hound disappeared back into the Guado ranks, although Seymour could generally tell where he was going by the sheer terror he caused amongst the men. Seymour turned back to the front then, and just as he did he saw Setanta lunging forward with his red-bladed sword poised to strike. Seymour impulsively swung with his scimitar, and Setanta brought his sword vertically in front of him as he swept through beside Seymour. When their blades met the scimitar was split in half, and the broken blade spun away through the air. Setanta flew behind him, and before Seymour could turn he felt the cold end of a pistol barrel pressed roughly against the back of his head. Seymour was frozen in place by the bone-chilling shock and heart-rending anxiety of his fate, now sealed forever.

"It's over…" Setanta said in a low tone. In the next instant a thundering shot rang out, and Seymour fell dead on the plain. The Guado and Yevon soldiers were routed immediately after that. Suldane and his men charged into the city gates, and the whole army flooded after them. The retreating enemies were hunted until they escaped from the field or fell, or fled through the city toward the Moonflow. Most of the denizens of Guadosalam were fleeing in a panic, abandoning the city. Setanta could see Conchubar coming across the plains with his gnarled staff in hand, and Yuna followed closely after him, with Rikku at her side and her Ronso companions behind her. Conchubar soon stepped up beside him and spoke.

"You've won again, good Setanta. The Lord's strength truly lives in you!" The old shaman said happily, with a twinkle in his sagely blue eyes.

"We've finally won the war against Yevon. Now it's time for the final war against Sin. Conchubar, where do we begin? What should we do now?" Setanta asked him eagerly.

"We must consult the Lord, and be prudent. We can't be careless now… there's too much at stake. Take over the city for now, and when we have settled and garrisoned within Guadosalam, I shall conduct the rituals and beseech the Lord for his guidance." Conchubar said decisively. Setanta nodded in agreement, and the old man strode onward into the city. Yuna came to him then, and embraced him in a tight hug.

"You've done it!" She said excitedly.

"That we have… and now we're done with the war. Only one battle remains. The Calm will be here soon!" Setanta said triumphantly, and he lifted Yuna up in his arms and spun around with her as they laughed together in joy and relief. He carried her into the conquered city to join his men in their victory celebration.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: The Fallen Angel**

The army of Setanta and his Lord entered Guadosalam to find the city hastily abandoned. The Guado had fled southward to the forests around the Moonflow and the hills of the Djose region. Setanta marched in to be greeted only by his own men, who were raucous and invigorated over their victory.

Suldane and Kelk Ronso came to meet him, along with Gippal, Auron, Raven and the other chieftains.

"The Guado have fled the city… it's practically empty. We can garrison our men and set up shop however we please!" Suldane said eagerly.

"We should take the mansion as our personal headquarters, and then set up guards at both entrances and throughout the city… find the local shops and set up supply quartermasters to manage them. The men can be quartered in abandoned homes, but keep track of where all of them are. We need to maintain discipline and readiness… if anything happens or an opportunity presents itself to us, we need to be ready to march immediately." Setanta said.

"Good. I'll see to it." Suldane replied.

"Conchubar, and Raven… find a suitable place for the wounded. My wife can help with treating them. Everyone else come with me, and lets storm the mansion!" Setanta said gleefully. His comrades followed him into the doors of the luxuriant and vibrant Guado manor. Chief Barbay and his men kicked open the doors to the dining room and immediately pillaged the tables of their food and beverages. Brutus and the other hounds raced back and forth from the dining hall to the main hall, sprinting so fast that their long lupine tongues hung flapping out from the sides of their foaming mouths. Setanta walked up the staircase that spiralled up the master bedroom, and on the way he slashed through the paintings of the Guado leaders, and his men tore them off the wall and threw them onto the floor below.

Setanta entered the plush private quarters of the Guado lords. He saw the bed and the wardrobe, and the gaudy mirror beside it. Jericho, Barbay and the others came along behind him and gazed around the room in bewilderment.

"What in Spira is this!?" Barbay exclaimed in amazement. He ran forward and jumped onto the bed, and then bounced back off of it.

"They like their beds springy in Guadosalam…" Jericho remarked.

"These Guado are such degenerates… to live in the lap of luxury like this, is disgusting…" Setanta concluded disdainfully.

"You should try it for a change. Maybe you'll like it." Gippal said to him. Setanta shuddered.

"Well, you never had a… Honeymoon, after all. Your wife should like it." Barbay suggested with a smug smile.

"I'll be sleeping on the floor with the dog…" Setanta replied. They all laughed boisterously. Auron rubbed his ears sorely.

"For a bunch of stoics, you don't seem to have any consideration of other people's ears." Auron said.

"You're a bit fresh to our ranks, Auron. Don't try to bring our spirits down. We've got one more step to take in this journey. You should appreciate our time together." Setanta said with an amused grin, and his fellows chuckled.

"Of course… how selfish of me." Auron conceded with a smirk. Setanta strode past him back to the main hall and out to the streets of Guadosalam. He found Yuna and Rikku there waiting for him.

"Were you boys having fun in there? We could hear you throwing things and laughing…" Yuna said with a coy smile.

"You should take a look for yourself! Personally, I don't think I'll be comfortable in there, but we need an officious looking command center. So how are things around the city now?" He asked.

"I went to the relief station that Conchubar set up. I healed the men there, and your father has brought plenty of supplies to help them recover. They want to meet with you soon, and they're wondering if the manor is a suitable place…" Yuna informed him.

"It will do. It has a large enough conference room. I'll have my men set it up for us. You should go upstairs and make the bedroom comfortable for yourself, and get some rest. You look like you're still tired, Sweetness." Setanta said as he swept aside the strands of hair that fell about her face.

"I am… but I want to spend time with you. I want to talk with you soon…" Yuna urged him. Setanta nodded.

"Of course. Take a nap, and we'll have dinner together. We have plenty of time now." Setanta said. Yuna nodded, a bit sulkily. Setanta paused and cradled her chin in his fingers.

"Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Yes, I'm fine." She said quickly.

"Are you sure? Do you want me to go with you to the manor?" He asked.

"No, it's alright… I understand you need to take care of things for your campaign. I'll see you soon though, won't I?" She asked.

"Of course. Do you want to speak to Conchubar? I'll send him to the manor to visit you…" Setanta offered. Yuna nodded gratefully.

"Yes, thank you." She said. Setanta kissed her, and then they parted as he went to consult his lieutenants, and she went with Rikku and her Ronso guardians into the captured Guado manor. Yuna and Rikku entered the manor and found the luxuriant first floor ravaged and ransacked, but as soon as Setanta's men saw her enter they immediately began cleaning up their mess. Yuna and her friends went upstairs then, and saw the still intact extravagance of the master bedroom and the upstairs quarters.

"Oh wow! This is amazing!" Rikku said exuberantly. She went to jump on the plush bed and sprawl out across it. Yuna sat down on the side of the bed and felt the soft pillows.

"I can't believe Setanta wanted to stay here! He always said his own yurt was getting too cozy for him!" Yuna remarked in amusement. Rikku sat up then.

"Yunie, we need to have a talk, just us girls!" She said, gazing expectantly upon Kimahri, clearly indicating that she wanted him to leave. Kimahri nodded and shrugged his shoulders, and he went out to guard the staircase leading to the upper chambers. Curiously, Neela remained, but Rikku didn't make any fuss about it.

"What is it you want to talk about? We really have so much to catch up on, don't we? Two lifetimes, in fact!" Yuna said smiling. Rikku's face was surprisingly stern.

"We should start with your new hubby… Yuna, what on earth came over you? He kidnapped you, right?" Rikku asked in disdain. Yuna almost nodded, but she glanced aside then and reflected in silence for a moment. Rikku quickly prompted her again.

"Right? I mean how can you forgive that? How could you have fallen for him, allowed him to marry you so soon?" Rikku ranted indignantly.

"Well, it is true that he took me to his tribal village against my will. They kept me there, they converted me from Yevon to Remphan's Covenant, and the wedding was only a couple days later. They made me go through with the wedding, and I was unwilling, until I saw Setanta arrive at the ceremony. He looked so handsome and gentle, and full of life. Then I saw the Lord bestow his blessing upon Setanta... He looked like an angel then, beaming with love and light, and I couldn't resist him." Yuna revealed. Rikku watched her in dismay.

"So then he took advantage of you! Yuna, wake up! This can't be right for you!" Rikku protested. Yuna shook her head firmly.

"It is right for me; more right than anything in my life has been. You don't know him, Rikku. I understand that you care about my happiness, and that means so much to me… but you don't know how happy Setanta has made me already. You don't know what kind of man he is, and you should, because he's wonderful… I'm lucky to have him. I know that it's hard to believe, but you weren't there, and you haven't seen what I have. In time you will, and then you'll understand. Please, let's not fight over this now." Yuna beseeched her cousin.

"But Yuna… how can you love someone who did that to you? Kidnapping you? Forcing you to love them? It can't work that way…" She argued. At that point, Neela broke her silence and spoke up with her sultry, wizened voice.

"It is not so strange in Ronso romance, to kidnap the one you love. Ronso braves do it from time to time, but most often it is the Ronso women who set traps to ensnare the mate they want, and then seduce him." She said with a sly grin. Rikku shuddered.

"Alright, maybe this talk should be for humans only now!" She exclaimed. Neela chuckled wickedly.

"The dark truths of love are hard for young girls to accept. They reveal secrets of the heart that we would rather leave unknown. But a woman can hardly control her heart… instead it is Nature that rules the heart and ties the bonds of love, and love cannot resist those virtues of Nature… Setanta is a powerful man, and handsome, and brave… to be sure it would be hard for any woman not to love him, when he is so gifted by Nature." Neela said.

"That's not why I love him. I do love his bravery, of course… but it's his purity of heart, his kindness and his devotion. He is so willing to risk everything for his people and for Spira. That's the man I want to devote my life to." Yuna spoke with surety. Neela nodded and chuckled yet again.

"Of course that is true, and doesn't the girl know that these are the man's virtues in Nature? Great men do have these virtues naturally. Your Setanta has the same heart that Kimahri has… it's that heart of a warrior, of a chieftain, of a shaman, and a lover. That is the heart of the great man." Neela said. Yuna nodded in agreement with her.

"I can see what you mean. Do you feel that way, about Kimahri?" She asked.

"Of course. But Kimahri is stubborn. He will never go with me, until he knows that the girl Yuna is safe. Perhaps if the Calm does come, then he will go with me. Until then, nothing will move his heart." Neela said.

"I understand… don't worry. The Calm will be coming very soon." Yuna assured her. Rikku was irritable and spoke up impatiently.

"So there's nothing I can say to change your mind then? You know, we don't have to stay here. We can escape, and leave Spira on an Al-Bhed ship. We don't have to do this anymore…" Rikku proposed to her with one last attempt.

"I do have to. I have to follow the way of the Lord. I've accepted his covenant, and he gave me these powers to use for sake of the people of Spira. I'm not giving up, I don't care what happens." Yuna replied firmly. Rikku's head and shoulders sank then.

"Alright. Can I come with you then?" She asked. Yuna looked upon her sympathetically then.

"Yes, if that's what you wish. I understand why you are upset, Rikku, and I'm glad that you found me. I'm glad to have you with me. You have to realize though, that I'm never going to turn away from my husband and his quest, or from the legacy of my father, and the world he wanted to create. Those things are far more important than my own life or comfort." Yuna said to her. Rikku sighed sadly.

"It's just that… I don't have any family other than Dad… and he's always been busy trying to make Home better and safer, for the Al-Bhed people. Mom died when I was just a little girl. You're the only family I have left, and I don't want to lose you, Yuna!" Rikku explained to her in lachrymose expression. Yuna wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"You won't lose me… this is the end of Sin, not of us. We will have the Calm, and we will have a future. I have faith in that…" Yuna said, and she rested her chin atop Rikku's blonde head.

"You have the fire of courage in you, girl. I will help you however I can." Neela offered. Yuna nodded gratefully.

"Thank you. I'm happy to have you." Yuna said. The three of them sat together and talked for about life and the future for a long time, until Kimahri appeared in the hall outside the doorway, and Conchubar came stepping into the doorframe, rapping his staff on the frame before entering.

"Conchubar!" Yuna greeted him, both in relief and surprise.

"Yuna. Am I interrupting something? Setanta said you might wish to speak with me." The old sage asked.

"Yes, there is something I want to talk with you about." Yuna replied. Her friends left the room then, and Conchubar sat down on the bedside with her.

"What is troubling you, dear Yuna?" He asked her. Yuna hesitated for a moment before she spoke.

"I've been having a lot of thoughts and feelings, from my old life and the pilgrimage for Yevon. I know it's gone now, and I don't want to go back to it. But I can't help feeling… sad about it." Yuna admitted. Conchubar nodded in contemplation.

"Of course, there is something very touching and melancholy in the Yevonite traditions, as they are presented. Of course, we all feel a connection to our past trials and passions, even after we have moved on. It is nothing to be ashamed of. Why do you feel sad?" He asked.

"I was so devoted to going through with it, and saving Spira. I never had the time to enjoy life as a young girl, because I was preparing for several years to become a summoner. Even on the pilgrimage, I held back from expressing myself and my feelings for others, because I was expecting to die by the end of it." Yuna revealed. Conchubar nodded, as if he knew what she was speaking of.

"I see. So you regret that you never shared your feelings for others. A certain person in particular, I suppose?" He asked. Yuna was quiet for a moment, and then she spoke.

"Yes. You were right when you said that my heart was fluttering about. I was in love with someone before, and I never told him until it was too late. But I can't give up my love for Setanta, or for him either. I feel sorry for him now, knowing that he's going on to fight Sin alone, and he can't really win. I feel sorry for him, and I don't know what to do. I know I have to tell Setanta, and I don't know how he will react…" Yuna said with a sense of deep dread. Conchubar rubbed his beard with his wrinkled old fingers.

"Indeed… it is a difficult thing to admit one's feelings when they are uncomfortable to others we care about. And especially when our feelings are in conflict with each other. Why do you feel so sad for this young man? Why must he go forward with this mission of his? Does he not believe in our campaign?" Conchubar asked.

"It's more than that… his father was on the last pilgrimage with my father. They both died, and his father became the new Sin. He is determined to face his father one last time. After that happens, he know he will die. That's what he told me, essentially. There is more to it than that, but I don't know how to explain it. I don't understand it myself. I feel sorry for him, because he never had a choice in this, and he deserves better. Even though I can never be with him, I want him to be happy and safe. I don't know how I can be happy knowing what is going to happen to him. I don't know how I can go on in life now, after everything that has happened to us all. Is it wrong for me to feel this way? Am I just stumbling along behind my heart, and being selfish? I don't want anyone else to be hurt because of my own confusion." Yuna said mournfully. Conchubar shook his head.

"I don't think it is selfishness, to admit the truth that is in your own heart, but I warn you to be discerning and honest with yourself as well. You have to acknowledge your own needs and desires, and be sincere about what you want to do, and what you can do. All of us have to make choices in life, and those choices will have consequences, intended or not, and you have to set priorities even within your heart, so as not be misled by your feelings. You may have been in love with this other man, but if it is not meant to be, then what will it bring to your life? Of course compassion is not a crime. But the heart is often fickle and impassioned. It leads us into misery if we do not submit to reason. The heart sees what it wants and romanticizes it, but it does not realize the nature of life and the constant change it undergoes. What may make you happy for a moment or even for a year could make you miserable for the rest of your life afterward. Thus it is best to devote ourselves to timeless things, and things which are attuned to our own nature. Family and faith, tribe and nation, land and people… these are the themes of our existence, and vessels to carry us on the journey of life. Those are the things to which we must hold firmly, and unwaveringly. So I will say this to you… that you should always choose your husband, your new family and beliefs, and your new folk. Everything else will only beguile you and lead you astray." Conchubar advised her. Yuna nodded briefly, gazing across the floor.

"You're right. I know I have to learn to let go of these feelings, but it is very hard." Yuna said.

"Not necessarily to let go of them, but to understand and accept them for what they are. Your heart has to grow wise, to move through life and its challenges, and of course feelings like these are inevitable, as well as doubts and fears, and all other things that test us and our devotion to honor and duty. But with the Lord's help, and with reason, with wisdom and integrity, we can overcome. You can overcome, Yuna. Indeed, I know that you are meant to. Sadness and loss are only temporary slights in the growth of life. Even for your old friend, whatever happens to him is not the end, but only a new beginning, and the mourning of these things only needs to be temporary." Conchubar assured her, placing a gentle hand upon hers.

"Yes, I think so too… but what should I do now?" Yuna asked him.

"Focus yourself inward, and into the spirit, and upon the Lord, and that which uplifts the spirit and cultivates the powers of the heart. You should attend rituals with me, and spend some time in meditation on your own, perform your own ablutions and abstentions, and dedications to the Lord. Of course, apart from these things, you must also fulfill your role as a wife, and you should tell these things to Setanta. You should be honest and forthright with your husband, and I will speak with him as well if I can help. I will always wish to advise you and help in any way that I can, but I am a shaman, not a confessor or Yevonite priest. I cannot allow others to fall in spiritual bondage to me, through taking their confessions in private this way. It would be wrongful for me to take such powers and influence over a person in the covenant, and of our folk. I must lead my people forward to enlightenment and fulfillment, and uplift them if I can. So therefore you must present these matters to the people involved, with sincerity and openness. Our people will understand, and will not begrudge anyone who is forthright and true." Conchubar urged her. Yuna nodded in agreement.

"Of course, I will tell him soon." She assured Conchubar. "What must I do, to devote myself to the covenant?"

"Purify your heart and spirit, and speak often with the Lord, and seek him out. I feel that the coming conclusion of our struggle will require your help in particular, Yuna. You too are favored by the Lord, as one of his devoted people. He will not overlook any of us, in the fight for his coming age." Conchubar surmised.

"When will we have to go? Where will we confront Sin?" Yuna asked.

"Soon, but perhaps not as soon as we would like to. I have a feeling that the Lord will make his will apparent, in good time. Until then, our duty is to prepare. I will help you along the spiritual path, good Yuna. For now, however, I must speak with Suldane and Setanta. They must be prepared as well." Conchubar said, and he stood up to go.

"Thank you for everything, Conchubar. I appreciate everything you have done for me." Yuna said graciously. Conchubar nodded with a good natured smile.

"Of course, I will always be glad to help you. Never hesitate to ask." He said, and he turned and strode slowly out of the room. Yuna laid back onto the bed, and drifted off into sleep.

In the Calm Lands, a soft zephyr blew across the golden and green grasses of the plains, where Tidus and Paine walked along on the way to the mountain pass. They had visited the trading post in the middle of the plains, and spent their last gil to acquire bedrolls, blankets, food, a fishing pole and small spear for hunting. They made their way near the end of the Calm Lands together, light-hearted and free. Paine looked upon him often, with light in her eyes and warmth in her expression.

"You're finally free now, eh?" Tidus said to her with a smile.

"Yes! Just how I always wanted it! But in real life it's much better than I ever imagined, because now I have you!" She said gleefully. Tidus chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He put his troubles out of his mind for the moment, but he remembered his mission and the destination he was moving toward. They left the Calm Lands and went into the rocky ridge where the bridges to Mount Gagazet stood. They saw beside it a path leading downward to the bottom of the canyon, and the cave that lay there awaiting them. As they reached the canyon floor, Tidus led the way into the ominous round cave entrance, under an engraved archway. Smoky blue mist floated above it, from pores in the rock wall of the canyon.

"Do you think this is a good spot for us?" Paine asked him as she walked by the entrance.

"Sure, let's check it out. If it's not right, then we'll keep looking." He replied. They went into the depths together, and found a large round chamber near the entrance, and long winding caverns beyond it.

"We can easily set up a place here!" Paine said happily. Tidus nodded.

"Good call Babe! Can you do me a favor and set up our gear? I think I should go exploring and see what else is down here, before we get too comfortable…" Tidus asked her, not betraying his own purposes. Paine nodded with a warm smile, and started opening up their packs. Tidus went walking downward through the twisting and turning caves then, amid dark blue mist that issued from the walls in various places, and pyreflies that drifted listlessly about, whining softly. The cave was very still and quiet, and almost melancholy. It was a place all but forgotten by the world.

Tidus finally came to a chamber wherein he found a Fayth statue, lying in a deep impression on the cave floor, and over it were draped white ribbons with Yevonite verses written across them. This vibrant, red and orange and purple statue, seemed to have a very pronounced aura about it, and it hummed faintly with power. Tidus went to the side of the altar and knelt down there, and he watched the old statue for some time, waiting for any sign of activity. After a while it began to glow, and then a faint figure came into view, drifting up from out of the statue. This apparition was in the form of a warrior, in a blue tunic and with a gray steel helmet, the visor of which covered his upper face and his eyes shone through dark eyelets. The spirit of this Fayth spoke with a deep voice.

"You are here in the cloister of Yojimbo. What is it that you seek?" Yojimbo asked him.

"I was sent here by the Fayth of Bevelle temple. He told me to find you, he said that you would teach me what I need to know to fight against Sin." Tidus said. Yojimbo's ghost peered at him in silence for a moment.

"I don't usually offer my services without adequate compensation." Yojimbo said.

"You're one of the Fayth aren't you? You want to rest, right? That's why I'm here. You know I'm not a normal Spiran, don't you?" Tidus asked him, a bit impatiently.

"Indeed, I see that. So then you must be the one sent to bring the end of our dream… and your father came before you, to become the last Sin. I see now… and my wait is over. I can teach you and train you, for that last battle. It will take some time, for you to learn how to use the hidden pathways through the realms of the spirit. I hope you have the discipline for it, and the courage…" Yojimba said wistfully.

"I've got what it takes, don't worry." Tidus assured him confidently.

"Of course. They would not have sent you otherwise. So then, let's begin." Yojimbo said, and then suddenly he rose out of the altar completely, and shifted into the form of a mighty Aeon with a long Daikatana at his back, and weapons lining his sash. His mask-like face glimmered under a broad, round hat, and long purple robes covered his figure. His hound, a Daigoro dog, came out of the shadows to join him. Tidus drew his sword then; it was an old red-bladed fencing sword, all that he retained after he sold the Brotherhood sword in order to purchase the supplies for his final mission. He held it firmly and squared off against Yojimbo.

"I'm ready, Coach." Tidus said with the glint of eagerness in his bright blue eyes.

A couple weeks passed by while Setanta had garrisoned his army and established his command center at Guadosalam. He spent much of his time at the manor with Yuna during those days, but he often consulted Conchubar, to ask him when they might finally march off to do battle with Sin. Always, the old sage counseled him to wait a while longer. Setanta and many of his men were slowly maddened with impatience. However on this particular day he did not trouble himself over it, but instead went with Yuna to see the Farplane, in the back corner of Guadosalam's majestic streets and secluded passageways. They walked there hand in hand, and together they ascended the steps and went through the shimmering portal that stood between worlds. They stepped onto the platform that stood overlooking the eternally vast, flowering fields and streaming waters of the Farplane. For a long moment they stood close together, holding hands, and observing the haunting beauty of the other realm with its dusky skies and shimmering clouds, and the glistening waterfalls that fell into endless abysses, between the plateaus covered with red, violet, yellow and blue flowers.

Yuna turned to gaze up into Setanta's warm, amber eyes, and he looked down upon her lovingly and patted her cheek with a gentle but powerful hand. They strode together to the edge of the platform then, to see what the ethereal world would show them. After a moment, the faint apparition of Yuna's parents appeared before them. Braska and his Al-Bhed wife appeared standing together, gazing back at them in silence, as if they were almost alive but separated from them by an unperceived distance or barrier. Yuna looked upon them both in quiet wonderment and regard for a long moment. Setanta said nothing for a while, but then he spoke softly.

"Your father looks like a gentleman… a man of moral strength." He said. Yuna nodded appreciatively.

"Yes, he always was. When I was girl he was very loving and dedicated, but he made sure that I studied and did my chores, and he made sure that I was well-behaved." Yuna reflected gratefully.

"Now I can see a lot of your mother in you. She's very lovely." Setanta said. Again Yuna nodded.

"Thank you." She said. "What about you? Isn't there someone you'd like to see?"

"My parents are still with me, and Conchubar was my teacher and mentor throughout most of my life… but actually, I would like to see Grandfather Murdoch, and Uncle Culain." Setanta said, and he turned a bit to the side and peered into the distance of the Farplane. Then suddenly, two figures appeared. One of them looked like an older and thinner version of Suldane, though perhaps a bit taller even. He was a rugged and wizened old warlord, clad in dark leather armor and red battle-robes. His long, gray-and-black hair flowed straight down his back and over his broad shoulders and chest. His beard was long and dark, and speckled with gray and silver hairs. The other figure was a youthful and muscular blond-haired warrior, who looked to be related to Setanta's mother. The old Murdoch looked sagely and dignified, serious but also calm. Culain was smiling faintly and had an affable expression.

"Tell me about them." Yuna asked him curiously.

"They died in battle, against Crusaders who came one day to drive our tribe out of Djose. They defeated them, but died of their wounds. I remember Grandfather always brought me gifts from his raids and adventures, and let me ride on his hound's back when he took me fishing or exploring. He was very devout and good friends with Conchubar. Uncle Culain used to play with me, and taught me to use a sword when I was a boy. He was always laughing, and never worried by anything. After they died, they didn't even have to be sent. I always regretted that I wasn't old enough to go out to battle with them that day." Setanta reminisced.

"Your grandfather looks so much like Suldane, I thought it was him for a moment!" Yuna remarked. Setanta chuckled.

"Oh yes… it's almost like he's not gone at all. But Father has a very different attitude and personality. Still, they share some quirks and old adages." Setanta said.

"It seems like your father is angry and happy at the same time…" Yuna commented.

"Oh yes, he's always happy when he's at war. Just like Grandfather, he loves to fight, perhaps a bit too much, but he'll never back down from a challenge or a chance to prove himself worthy to the Lord." Setanta replied. Yuna was quiet for a moment, but she felt that she needed to tell him what was on her mind, and now was the time.

"Can we talk about something… a little serious, perhaps?" She asked. Setanta turned away from the apparitions of his fallen kinsfolk and faced her sympathetically.

"Of course. What is it, my Love?" He asked her.

"Let's go back to the manor first." She said, not wishing to tarnish his memory of his family with unhappy words. Setanta nodded and took her hand, and together they walked back through the city toward the Guado manor. Before they reached it, they saw Suldane and Conchubar walking across the pathway in front of them, and when they spotted the two of them they came to meet Setanta.

"We need you present for the meeting we're holding in the conference room, Son. The scouts have something to report to us from their last ride." Suldane said to him, with a sense of urgency. Setanta nodded in acquiescence, then he turned to Yuna.

"We'll talk tonight, my Love. Spend some time with your friends, and I'll meet you later." He said, and he kissed her before leaving her to go with his Father and the old shaman. Yuna watched them walk away and enter the manor, and then she followed after them and went up the staircase, hanging just over the middle so that she could hear some of what was said in the conference hall.

Setanta, Suldane and Conchubar took their places around a long table in the middle of the hall, and then the others grew still as the chieftain of the Mounted Marauders spoke up.

"The Guado have regrouped, and assaulted Djose temple. They razed it to the ground. Scouts are reporting that they have moved across the Mi'ihen Highroad, and a legion of fiends is already on the outskirts of Luca." Jericho reported. Everyone in the room was suddenly alarmed and infuriated.

"Damn those Guado! This is the last thing we need right now!" Suldane growled fiercely.

"Now of all times? What is being done in Luca? What forces do they have?" Setanta demanded urgently.

"We're not sure, but rumor has it that most of the Yevon troops there are in total disarray or abandoned their posts weeks ago. Many of them were mustered here to protect Seymour, and we crushed them." Jericho surmised.

"Whatever they've got left, it won't be enough." Chief Barbay speculated aloud.

"Why would they try this now? What could they be hoping to do?" Gippal asked, bewildered.

"Obviously they have nothing left to lose now, and so they are hell-bent on conquering the city…" Suldane suggested.

"Regardless, it doesn't matter now. They have to be stopped, and the people of Luca should be evacuated. The city won't be safe from Sin, now that it's apparently unprotected." Setanta said decisively.

"We can't reach the city in time, certainly not if we take cannons and artillery…" Suldane reminded him bleakly. Setanta stood up irritably from his seat and paced around the table.

"How many chocobos do we have left now?" He asked Jericho.

"Between us and the Crusaders, maybe a hundred and fifty. That kid, Clasko, has been rounding some up for us, but we're short on trained knights." Jericho said. Setanta's face was stern with displeasure.

"I'd want twice that number, but it will have to do. I'll ride to Luca with a dozen of my best fiend-fighting men, and all the Crusaders and Marauders who can ride. We'll strike at the Guado themselves, and break the siege. Then we can lead the civilians to safety." Setanta spoke with determination. Conchubar immediately spoke up to stall him.

"We have not yet received a sign from the Lord. You are rushing into battle without guidance and without a plan. Our mission is first and foremost to destroy Sin; after that we may deal with the Guado." Conchubar warned him.

"What else can we do? Those people need our help! If we don't go now, then Luca will be lost and the Guado will regain a seat of power. Who knows how many they will slaughter in the process..." Setanta argued desperately.

"I think it is unwise and dangerous, Setanta. We all have to do our duty, especially now when there is so much at stake! We cannot risk weakening our forces, and we can't risk losing you! You're our commander and the champion of the Lord himself!" Conchubar urged him to come to his senses. Setanta turned away from them all and faced the wall. He was silent for a moment before he spoke.

"I know that… but how can I leave them to such a fate? How can I be fit to lead these men, with so many innocent lives on my conscience? How will the Lord judge me for it? All they are is some Guado and fiends. It is nothing that I haven't faced before." Setanta said, with an eagerness to fight and uphold the right.

"I can't control you anymore, Setanta… but I urge you to reconsider. You should not split up your army, and you should not be taking chances on anything at this point. I know it is hard to let anyone be lost, but it may be necessary to save Spira. You have to use your wits. If you are lost, we may never defeat Sin, and the age of our Lord may be lost for another seven thousand years." Conchubar surmised darkly. Setanta shook his head.

"Impossible. The Lord will not be thwarted by darkness. His way is ultimate power…" Setanta said firmly, and in shock to hear such words from his old mentor.

"Indeed it is, but we are all a part of this world, and we all have a role to play. To deny this is to twist the fates, and who knows what consequences may come of it. I beg you Setanta, be careful…" Conchubar urged him.

"Forget about Luca, boy! Those people chose their fates when they put their trust in liars and conniving charlatans. We have chosen our own fate, and decided to be free of Sin. Stay the course, and don't be discouraged by the trifling defeats. In the end we will win!" Suldane argued with him.

"This is about more than us, Father! Those people have lives and stories of their own! I won't abandon them. I know we will win. I'm leaving you in charge of the army, and I expect you to maintain order here until I return. Jericho and Luzzu, assemble your men and prepare to ride with all haste. We're going to liberate the people of Luca, and then we shall return. We'll be back soon, don't doubt it." Setanta told them all commandingly. Jericho stood to follow his orders, and Suldane rose from his seat to confront him once more.

"You think you can disregard the advice of your elders, boy?" He asked roughly.

"I think I have to do what you raised me for, and always told me to do… the right thing." Setanta replied. Suldane flexed his shoulders irritably then, but he soon relaxed.

"Fair enough. You better make it back, Son. I don't know if I can do this without you… I'm getting old." Suldane said reluctantly. Setanta smiled and shrugged.

"Nah, you're just in your prime, for a warlord. Don't worry. I'll come back." Setanta assured him, and then he turned to leave the conference room. As he was striding past the staircase, Yuna confronted him there.

"So you're leaving now?" She asked him, clearly brimming with dread. Setanta paused and gazed upon her, and he stepped up the stairs to meet her.

"Yes. I'm going to Luca. It's under attack and someone has to do something. It won't be difficult; I know we can handle the Guado and their fiends." Setanta said confidently.

"I'm sure you can… but I have a very bad feeling about it." She warned him.

"I know, but what else could I do? I have to save whoever I can. You understand why I have to do this, don't you?" He asked her. Yuna nodded.

"Of course… and that's why I love you. Brave, and selfless to a fault. Just promise me you're not going to be careless. I need you to come back…" Yuna urged him. Setanta smiled and kissed her affectionately.

"I will. Pray for me." He said, and then he released her and went down to leave the manor.

Setanta and his followers saddled up on their chocobos, and they rode around the Moonflow and across the Mi'ihen region toward Luca.

In the cavern of the Fayth under Mount Gagazet, Tidus was sitting in front of the statue of the Fayth, and the apparition of Yojimbo was drifting over it, sitting with his legs crossed in front of him. Their eyes were closed, and they seemed to be at rest. There was an aura shared between them, and magic flowing across it. Tidus was covered in cold sweat and beginning to twitch irritably. His skin was burning and his head felt light, and it ached in the middle of his forehead. He had tried this exercise with Yojimbo several days in a row now, but it had always reached a breaking point at which he could not continue. He began to shift uncomfortably.

"Relax… hold still." Yojimbo encouraged him with a soft, raspy voice. Tidus tried to calm himself. He breathed out heavily. Soon he felt his body shaking, and it became gradually more violent.

"Don't panic. It's working…" Yojimbo said. Tidus felt himself going numb, and then suddenly he felt himself fall over and sprawl out on the floor unwillingly. He was paralyzed for a long moment, and he could no longer see the aura over him. Then he slowly regained control of his limbs. He groaned and laboriously got onto his feet. He could not see Yojimbo anywhere.

"Hey! Where did you go?" He called out. He heard a voice inside his head then.

"I'm still here…" it said. It was Yojimbo's voice.

"It worked!" Tidus exclaimed. He looked down to his hands then, and he could see the apparition of Yojimbo shadowing his own form, and trailing his movements.

"Now, let's train." Yojimbo said. Suddenly Tidus felt that he was lighter, more agile, and far more powerful. He felt a wave of confidence wash over him. He drew is sword, and swung it expertly. He lunged forward toward a tall boulder and brought his sword down on the middle of it, and to his utter shock and disbelief, his blade split it effortlessly.

"Whoa! How did that happen?" Tidus cried out in shock.

"It's all in the technique… and the focus of energy. I'm retraining your muscle memory to match my own precision." Yojimbo said.

"That's incredible!" Tidus blurted.

"It will take some getting used to… you'll probably be sore after this. We should break for the day. Come back tomorrow, and we'll continue your lessons." Yojimbo told him. Tidus sat down again, and then he felt his body vibrating and becoming heavier again, and then Yojimbo appeared before him.

"Make sure you eat and rest, and don't spend too much time playing with your woman." Yojimbo advised him.

"No promises on that…" Tidus said with a chuckle.

"Don't burn yourself out. Too much of this kind of stress will actually kill you." Yojimbo said lastly, and then he descended back into his statue.

Tidus rubbed his face and forehead, and got up to leave the caverns. He went back up to the encampment where he and Paine had been living for the past couple weeks. Paine was not there, but he had a good idea as to where she was likely to be. He went climbing up the trail toward Mount Gagazet. He walked through the columns of stone, and the foot of the mountain where the Ronso typically resided, and from there he went up the snowy paths and into the high caverns of Gagazet. There were flooded caves and mountain springs there, some of them cold, but some of them warm or even hot. There was one hot spring in particular that Paine loved to frequent, which was surrounded by glowing crystals and ancient cave paintings.

Tidus went into the cave where this spring was, and he saw Paine there against the back wall where a cooler stream trickled down like a small waterfall and into a river tributary that poured out of the cave and down the outside of the mountain. She doused herself in the cool waterfall and then reached over to pick up a bar of soap, and lathered up her lithe, feminine body. When she had covered herself she then went back under the waterfall and washed herself clean. Tidus quickly stripped off his jacket and boots, and whooped loudly as he saw Paine turn toward him. She smiled and blushed faintly, and then strode seductively into the warm waters and soft sandy floor of the hot spring. Tidus stepped over the edge of the deep side of the spring, and dived into it. Paine neared the middle of the pool when she suddenly felt him grab her leg. She cried out and laughed loudly as he surfaced behind her and wrapped her up in his arms.

"Did you get a workout today?" She asked him.

"Yeah… you want to give me another one?" He said as he gently bit her shoulder. Paine squirmed her smooth figure around in his arms until she was facing him. She kissed him lustily. They made love passionately and then laid together in the shallows by the edge of the spring. They were relaxing in the warm waters for a long time, and then Paine rolled over and rested her face upon his chest.

"So, what exactly have you been training for all this time since we came to the mountain?" She asked him.

"Well you know… I just want to stay in shape. I want you to think I'm sexy of course; it takes a lot of work to look this good!" he said with a smile. Paine laughed light-heartedly.

"Really? Well that's good to know. But I never thought mountain life would make us fat… you sure you're not up to something? Anything you'd like to tell me, maybe?" She asked. Tidus hesitated, but he realized that this was his opportunity to tell her the truth. He didn't know if he could, however.

"Well… actually, there is. But I think it can still wait awhile. I think… you want a massage, and then you can give me one!" He suggested playfully. Paine smiled widely, and rolled over onto her belly. Tidus began kneading her shoulders and back, and she crooned with pleasure. After a while she was quiet, and he thought that she had fallen asleep. When Tidus sat back down beside her, Paine spoke.

"I know what you're up, Tidus…" She said, and he immediately tensed up and quivered for an instant in shock. She went on to say, "You still feel obligated to be the hero. You still want to save the world, help people, try to make a difference. I understand… I feel that way too, deep down. It's a really hard thing to let go of… but someday you'll realize what I did, when it finally hits you that nothing actually changes. When life kicks you down the ladder, and you hit the ground like I did… then suddenly you'll understand things." She said. Tidus was taken aback by this statement.

"Really? Is that what happened to you? How, and when?" He asked her. Paine breathed out a long and sad sigh.

"It happened to me at Operation Mi'ihen. I was on a different mission then… and I saw a lot of death. I don't know what happened exactly, but we found something in the cave there on Mushroom Rock Road… we were ordered to enter it, and when we did, everyone started losing their minds. We made it out somehow, but after we did, one of my friends went berserk, and he shot all of us. Then I fell into the ocean, where you found me." Paine said. Tidus placed a comforting hand upon her arm.

"Alright… I know that's horrible, but just because bad things can happen, do you really think that means that all of life is a wash?" He asked. Paine shrugged her shoulders slightly and turned her face toward him.

"Isn't it? Think of everything that happened to us. Think of everything that has been happening to this world for a thousand years. Nothing ever changes. We can't win. You saw what Sin did to Bevelle, and it only took one night to destroy thousands of lives and everything they ever accomplished. All of us are just as fragile as they were. It's only a matter of chance, which one of us will fall next, and all of us fall eventually." She said bleakly.

"You're right… I saw what happened at Bevelle. I saw what happens when people stand up together with a little bit of courage. I saw what you did, and you remember as well as I do, what the old man said before we left. We did save people, and we did win the day, and we made a difference. Surely you have more confidence in yourself than that, Paine… ever since I've known you, you've always been a brave person…" He argued with conviction.

"That was because I had nothing to lose. Now I have you… and I'm not giving you up!" She said, and her eyes moistened immediately. She sat up and wrapped her arms around him tightly. Tidus fell weak in her grasp then, and his resolve crumbled.

"Promise that you'll stay with me and not go back into the world!" She demanded from him. Tidus could barely make himself speak then.

"I can't promise that." He said finally.

"What do you mean!?" She cried out. Tidus reached within himself then and steeled his resolve. He spoke plainly and firmly.

"I can't let my friends fight alone, and I can't sit this one out. I am going back into the world, to fight and win. But you don't have to worry about me… no matter what happens, I love you and I always will." He said. She cried for a long time after he said this, and she clung to him tightly. Tidus was shaken then, in a way that he hadn't felt since the Fayth showed him the truth. He knew that he should tell her, but he couldn't summon the strength to do it. She was the last thing about Spira that he wasn't willing to let go of.

On the plains of Mi'ihen, Setanta and his chocobo cavalry came into sight of the city of Luca as dusk was setting in. They saw smoke rising and flames glowing orange within the city. They soon heard screams and shouts as they drew closer. They had been moving at a slow trot, to give their birds and dogs some rest, but Setanta drew his sword and pointed it forward, commanding them to charge. With this signal, they all urged their mounts onward at a swift gallop. They encountered a heavy concentration of fiends on the plains around the city, and Setanta broke off with a squad of riders while Jericho led the rest in battle. Setanta took his men to the steps that led down into Luca's market district. They hastened through the burning market, hacking through fiends on their way without stopping to engage the greater fiends that raged around the plaza.

Setanta led them down the causeway, beside the burning theater, and onward toward the center of town. They soon encountered scattered teams of Guado, who summoned fiends to delay them. Setanta and his warriors dismounted then and hacked their way through fiends and Guado alike. Brutus fought fiercely by his side, and Setanta went through the city streets until he finally spotted a handful of soldiers and civilian militia fighting desperately to defend a neighborhood. He charged in with his squad and lent them aid. Once they had chased the Guado away toward the harbor, Setanta gave orders to the soldiers and men he could find.

"Take as many civilians as you can, and get them out of the city! If you go across Mi'ihen, you'll see the rest of our army. Once you get behind our battlefront, we'll protect you from any fiends pursuing you out of the city. Go to Guadosalam, and tell the men there that you are refugees in need of assistance. My army will help you there." He told them. The soldiers saluted him and did as he bid them.

Setanta took his men further into the city, on the way to the harbor and the stadium. The fiend presence increased as they drew closer, and then Setanta spotted a team of Guado going into the stadium itself. He paused to look at the entrance where they had descended, and he thought he saw someone familiar. It was Seymour Guado. The maester turned and went into the stadium with his followers.

"Sir, what's wrong?" One of his warriors asked him.

"I just saw him again! It was Seymour, the Guado maester! He's unsent!" Setanta said. His men were visibly unnerved then, which was a difficult thing to achieve.

"If he has come back as a ghost, then he will be even more dangerous! We should take as many civilians as we can and fall back to the battlefront!" His lieutenant said. Setanta nodded in agreement.

"That's what we'll do for now. Come on! Let's go!" Setanta ordered them, and they backtracked through the streets, shouting into the houses, collecting up women and children and civilian men to lead them out of the city. Just as they were passing by the theater again, suddenly they felt the causeway trembling and shaking under their feet, and they all froze in shock. The tremors stopped abruptly, but an eerie quiet came over the city. Setanta knew something was horribly wrong.

"Go quickly! Run! Get out of the city!" He shouted, and his warriors took the people sprinting down the causeway to the market plaza as swiftly as they could. Setanta turned to look out across the sea, and he saw something rising out of the water in the distance. It was Sin's head, and he could hear its loud whining call. He heard a roaring sound drawing near; the sound of rushing water. Setanta immediately grabbed Brutus up in his mighty arms and dashed toward the nearest building, which he hoisted his hound onto the roof of and then climbed up himself. Water came pouring over the causeway and into the streets of Luca, followed soon by a rolling tsunami wave that washed ships and fishing boats onto the streets and flooded the whole city with ten feet of water.

Setanta was waiting atop the roof of the building, holding Brutus next to him. He watched as the water steadily receded back out to the sea, but then he saw Sin emerge from the ocean and come floating across the sky. Setanta raised his sword high above his head and spoke.

"Lord, is this my chance?" He asked. The sky overhead was dark and foreboding, and the setting sun was nearly blotted out as dark clouds came rolling in over the city. He watched as Sin drifted over the stadium and hovered there in place. Suddenly a beam of energy shot down from Sin's underbelly into the middle of the stadium, and a massive storm of pyreflies whirled upward into Sin, merging with it, and giving it an oversoul. Setanta knew then that he had to retreat. He took Brutus and jumped back down into the shallow waters still lingering on the streets, and together they ran as quickly as they could toward the steps that led back out onto the Highroad. Just as they were ascending the steps, suddenly a bright flash burst behind them, lighting up everything bright as mid-day, and Setanta felt himself lifted off the ground and thrown across the platform just below the Highroad. He hit his shoulder and back hard against the metal railing, and it bent and nearly broke from the impact. His right arm immediately went numb and was useless. He lost his sword as it fell down onto the platform below, and Brutus was flung down with it and injured. Setanta fell from the metal fencing down onto the marble platform. He was gasping for air and barely able to breathe. He rolled onto his back and gazed up across the sky; he could see the giant form of Sin facing toward him and floating closer.

Setanta knew then that he had made a fatal mistake. He felt a surreal dread come over him. He forced himself to get onto his feet and limp up the steps onto the Highroad. He knew that he had to survive, or his cause was lost. He ran as quickly as he could at a limping jog, across the field. He heard a terrifying sound behind him and saw eerie light flashing over the field around him. He tripped and fell over then, and could not get back up. His left leg was seized up and cramped. He rolled over onto his back again, looking up to the tremendous ball of dark energy building over Sin's head. It was staring right at him. Setanta lost all hope then. His whole body was numb and he felt that he was already dead. Sin was about to release the death surge upon him and across the whole plain. Only Heaven could intervene then, and so an emissary of the Lord came soaring through the black clouds, on silver wings that glimmered in the dying sunlight from the west. The angel, dressed in white robes, with fair skin and golden hair radiant like the noon sun, came gliding down overhead and landed on the road several paces in front of Setanta. The angel stood between him and Sin, and shielded Setanta with his wings as he lay helpless under the shadow of the Lord's servant.

The light grew too bright for him to stand it, and Setanta closed his eyes. A horrifying blast was unleashed then, and it flew past him, scorching the plains of Mi'ihen for miles and turning up a hurricane in its path. Setanta was left lying there deafened in the silence that fell upon the whole region after this onslaught. He quivered in pain and anguish, and when he finally opened his eyes he saw that Sin was gone, floating back across the eastern sea. Setanta saw the angel still standing there, immobile and lifeless; he had been transmogrified into stone, charred and black as obsidian. Setanta's heart ached and squirmed in his chest. He crawled toward the angel and touched his feet, feeling that it was true; now he was gone. Setanta wept freely then, in utter heartbreak. His tears that fell upon the angel's feet were instantly transmuted to blue crystals, but he could not behold this miracle, as his tears blinded him and stung his eyes. He fell back onto the ground in despair, unable to rise and robbed of all his strength. From the rubble, Brutus crawled out and pulled himself with his front paws; his back leg was broken. He limped and crawled up onto the field, and made his way to his master, and laid beside him, whining softly.

In Guadosalam, Yuna stirred from a nap she had lapsed into while sitting in the cushioned chair beside her bed. She had a dream, and as soon as she awoke the memories of it overwhelmed her. She saw Setanta lying in immense pain; she saw his misery and immediately knew that it was real. It filled her core with sickness and dread. She quickly got up and ran downstairs to the conference room, where she burst in upon Suldane, Conchubar and few of their men.

"Setanta is in trouble! He needs help!" She cried out to them. They gazed upon her in shock and bewilderment.

"What are you saying, Yuna?" Conchubar asked her.

"I saw him in a dream! He is hurt, and alone! We have to go to Luca now!" She demanded in distress. Rikku, Kimahri and Neela came down the stairs then, awoken by her shouting.

"She's right…" Conchubar admitted. "It was wrong to let him go. We have to find him, and quickly."

"Get us chocobos! Whatever is left, saddle them up. We're riding tonight!" Suldane ordered his lieutenants, and they rushed to do his bidding. They all left the manor then and went to the stables that had been built in the upper plaza on the road leading from Guadosalam to the Moonflow. The soldiers had prepared a dozen chocobos for them, nearly all that were left for the scouts after Setanta had taken the rest. Suldane chose one, and his men prepared their mounts to ride. When he saw Yuna and Rikku taking one of the chocobos, he strode over to interrupt them.

"What are you doing, Yuna?" He asked gently.

"I'm going with you." She said.

"We'll find Setanta and bring him back. You should wait here…" He said, but she immediately shouted in refusal.

"I'm going to find my husband!" Yuna said firmly. Suldane looked into her eyes then. He nodded in acceptance, and helped her fix the saddle properly for the two of them. Kimahri and Neela were there, and one of the lieutenants was desperately trying to explain that they were too heavy to ride a chocobo. Finally Auron appeared in the plaza and relieved him of his trouble.

"Perhaps you'll trust me to go with her, Kimahri? I was the one who gave you the mission, after all?" Auron said to him. Kimahri looked to him with a stern expression and said nothing. He finally nodded. Auron tapped him on the shoulder and then went to saddle up on a chocobo. Conchubar came up into the plaza as well, and requested a chocobo.

"I feel that I should go as well… somehow I feel the Lord calling me out to go." He said to Suldane, and the warlord helped the old shaman get into the saddle of one of the chocobos.

As soon as they had all mounted up, Suldane took the lead and they dashed out onto the road, heading south for Luca. They rode all night and straight through dawn, until they came to the plains of Mi'ihen. As they reached the travel agency near the coast, they saw that the roof was damaged and the signs and posts were blown over. Many trees had been splintered or knocked over as well. The chocobo riders and many civilian refugees were there, and many more were scattered on the lower road. They saw Jericho there, leading what was left of his men. Suldane stopped shortly to speak with him.

"What happened? Where is Setanta?" Suldane demanded. Jericho was weary and stammered as he spoke.

"He has to be dead… Sin destroyed the whole plain; we've seen no one since. I brought everyone I could here. We fled when we saw that Sin had appeared, but Setanta never came." he answered sullenly. Yuna and Rikku immediately sped past him then and went riding down the road to Luca. Auron, Suldane and his men quickly followed them. They went on further, and smelt smoke and soon saw the scorched fields ahead. They rode on over the blackened plains, still smoking from the smouldering cinders of the previous night. As they went over the blackened road, they saw some of Setanta's men walking back toward Luca and scanning the fields. They passed by them on the road, but Yuna and Suldane did not stop. They went on, until they saw a tall black figure standing in the middle of the road, and beneath it they could see Setanta and Brutus laying on the ground.

Yuna rode up within a few paces of him, then she and Rikku both jumped down out of the saddle and ran to Setanta's side. Yuna immediately fell to her knees beside him and took his head in her hands, cradling it in her lap. She began weeping instantaneously when she saw how torn and miserable he looked. She tried to focus her intention to heal him then, and called upon Remphan.

"Lord, please let him be healed!" She pleaded, and she placed her hands over his chest. The love within her was transmuted into a powerful magic, and it steadily welled up within her until she glowed brightly with a purple haze. Blue orbs of magical energy pulsed down her arms and into her palms, and then submerged into Setanta's skin. His muscles and facial features relaxed then, and his bleeding stopped. He still could not move. Yuna put her hands on his arm, and the bones set back into place. Then she touched his thigh, and healed it. Eventually Setanta was able to sit upright. Conchubar stepped up beside them then, and stared at the statue of the Angel, and the cerulean teardrop gems lying at his feet.

"The Lord's miracle…" Conchubar said softly. Setanta's eyes were still damp.

"Why would he sacrifice one of his own people for me? Why would he choose me?" Setanta asked him in utter despair. Conchubar turned to him sympathetically.

"Because you are worth so much, Setanta, and those who will follow you, and all those who will see this statue, and know your story, and the works of the Lord… He is raising up a whole multitude of souls, enlightening generations of people with this beacon of mercy. You are meant to lead others to his light, in this life and in the future. The Lord has indeed chosen you for his paragon… the time is not here yet. You must recover, and prepare yourself. Purifications and devotions must be given. This statue must be guarded, protected, and enshrined. Leave your men to watch over it, while we take you back to Guadosalam." Conchubar told him. Setanta nodded, as tears streamed from his bright amber eyes. Suldane and Auron lifted him up, and carried him back to their mounts with Yuna and Rikku trailing directly behind them. Conchubar picked up the crystalline tears and put them in a satchel, and took them with him back to Guadosalam.

In the cavern of the Fayth, Tidus and Yojimbo were sitting together in meditation. Their spirits were blending together in the aura, and Tidus was receiving the last arcane lessons and tuning of magical connections shared between them. Finally the aura faded, and he awoke from the trance state that they had entered. Yojimbo was gone. He heard the old warrior's voice in his head.

"Go to the back of the chamber, and touch the glyphs on the wall." Yojimbo told him. Tidus seemed to know where to step then, and he saw a vertical line of glyphs, glowing bright green, light up on the rock wall of the cave. He reached out and pressed his palm against the wall in the middle of the line of glyphs, and they all flared up briefly and then vanished. Suddenly the wall gave way and a doorway opened to another chamber in the cave. Tidus stepped slowly inside. A torch was lit suddenly, and in the faint light he saw several chests and weapon racks, piles of treasure and weapons strewn across the floor, and at the back of the chamber the firelight gleamed upon a set of samurai armor. It was fashioned of black leather scales and bound together by red and yellow cords. Folded up in front of it was a white tunic and baggy white pants embroidered with black dragons on each leg.

"This armor was mine. It should help you in the fight to come." Yojimbo said to him. Tidus stepped up to the armor and ran his fingers over the shoulder pads on the right side, and the tasseled cords on it. Then he felt Yojimbo beckoning him to turn around, and he stepped in front of a sword rack nearby and picked up a curved saber with a blade of blue steel, and red glyphs written across it. Tidus held it up, seeing his reflection upon the blade.

"The spirit in this sword wants to seek justice in the world. It should be a fitting companion for you, on your quest to vindicate the souls of the unavenged." Yojimbo said to him. Tidus nodded in gratitude and reverence.

"I'm ready to go now." Tidus said.

"First there is another mission you must complete, to erase the old order of this world and usher in a new one, so that our rest can be assured." Yojimbo told him.

"What mission?" Tidus asked.

"You must go to the ruins of Zanarkand, and confront Lady Yunalesca. She must be dispatched, for the ghosts haunting this age to be sent off into the Farplane. She represents too much suffering, and too many tragic memories linger because of her." Yojimbo explained to him.

"Alright… when do we leave?" Tidus asked.

"Now, of course." Yojimbo said.

"I have to say goodbye first…" Tidus said.

"Make it quick." Yojimbo urged him.

Tidus walked up the caverns toward the large chamber where their encampment stood. He found Paine there, sitting on her bedroll and gazing into a sphere. As he approached she broke her trance and set it down, and turned to look upon him as strode upright in his armor, with a sword sheathed at his back and a short spear in his right arm. She looked him up and down; he was handsome, and regal in his battle attire. Her eyes soon became damp however.

"Where are you going?" She asked him.

"To Zanarkand." He replied.

"Why?" She asked in bewilderment.

"I have to tie up some loose ends there. Certain things need to be done, for this age to fade away and new one to begin. Certain things need to be forgotten, so that the Fayth can rest." He explained. She gazed downward then.

"I see. So you never intended to disappear with me after all? You're still trying to save the world?" She asked.

"If I was free to choose, then I would have spent a lifetime with you and never looked back. But I'm not. I can't explain this right now… I will when I come back." Tidus said.

"I'm going with you." Paine said. Tidus could hear Yojimbo's objections in his head.

"No. She's not trained for what we're going to face. She would just die." Yojimbo warned him.

"It will be too dangerous. I have to go alone." Tidus said to her.

"Really? Now you think you're leaving me behind?" Paine argued fiercely.

"I don't want you to die… and I've been prepared for this. You haven't." Tidus said. Tears began to form in her eyes.

"You think it matters if I live or die, without you? I'm coming with you on the journey anyway. If you have to fight this battle without me, at least I'll be there with you." She said determinedly.

"Fair enough." Yojimbo said. Tidus nodded.

"Alright. Let's get a light pack ready, and go now." Tidus acquiesced. Paine stood up immediately and made preparations. In a few minutes they left the cave and started up the path to Gagazet.

They walked down the other side of the mountain, through the passes and rocky ravines. Finally they came to a pass, wherein there stood a wall of rock embedded with the bodies of thousands of the people who had become the Fayth. They walked up closer to this rock wall, and saw that it glowed with faint blue light. The whole ravine was illuminated by this magical aura.

"So these are all the people who were left from Zanarkand… they became the Fayth out of their own sadness and regret." Tidus said aloud.

"You're right… that's what Yevon teaches us." Paine replied.

"And you will liberate these lost souls." Yojimbo whispered to him. "Touch the wall."

At his bidding, Tidus placed his hand on the wall and immediately the blue light flowed into his arm. He was frozen in a trance then, and his consciousness was transported to another realm. He was in Zanarkand, and he saw the boy Fayth from Bevelle. This time they were standing on the patio of his old house and facing toward the vast, glittering expanse of the city. The boy spoke to him then.

"So you've made it this far. You found Yojimbo, and he has prepared you."

"Indeed I have. He is as ready as I can make him." Yojimbo answered, and he appeared with his dog, from the shadows at the other corner of the patio.

"Very well then. I will go with you too, Tidus, now that you can carry the Fayth. I'll help you in the fight against Yunalesca. After she is gone, only Sin and your father will remain to be dealt with." The boy said. Tidus nodded in acceptance.

"I understand. Let's see what we can do, after all." He said. The boy nodded, and then suddenly the vision vanished, and he found himself standing before the rock wall again. Paine was speaking to him and her hand rested on his shoulder.

"Are you alright? Tidus, talk to me!" She implored him.

"I'm fine. What happened?" He asked.

"You went into a trance, and you wouldn't answer me…" Paine said.

"I'm alright now." He assured her.

"What were you doing?" She asked.

"Just picking up another traveller." Tidus answered, and he turned and continued striding along the path. Paine followed after him in bewilderment.

They continued on their journey for many miles, until they finally exited the mountain passes and came to a ledge overlooking the dusty, dilapidated ruins of Zanarkand. Tidus stood there for a moment, observing the grim reality of his home's abandoned, haunted shell. They carried on down to the lonely road that led further into the ruins, and walked on the stone path in the middle of the sea. The long road finally brought them to the ruined coliseum of Zanarkand.

"What's in there?" Paine asked him.

"Lady Yunalesca, and the Final Fayth." Tidus replied. They continued up the steps and into the ruins, and suddenly they found themselves in a dim realm flooded with pyreflies and living memories. As they walked along the precipices of the trodden path, suddenly they beheld the apparitions of Braska, Jecht and Auron, running along the way in front of them.

"What was that?" Paine asked him in surprise.

"The last pilgrimage… my father, Yuna's father, and Auron." He answered. They continued, watching the apparitions replay the final steps of their pilgrimage, and the choice they had made to pay the ultimate sacrifice. Tidus and Paine found the long exhausted Fayth of Lord Zaon, and both Yojimbo and the boy-Fayth urged Tidus to continue on into the next chamber. There they saw her, the white-haired witch, Lady Yunalesca. She turned to them with her red-eyed gaze and spoke, lifelessly, as if she were nothing but a recording.

"Welcome to Zanarkand, brave pilgrims. Do not fear, for you shall receive that which you seek! The Final Aeon shall be yours at last, and the defeat of Sin awaits you! Come along, and I shall grant you the gift of the Final Fayth!" She said, beckoning them onward as she ascended the steps to her chamber and disappeared.

"What was she talking about? Didn't she see us? Couldn't she tell that we're not summoners?" Paine asked him in shock.

"She can tell that _you_ are embodying the Fayth… but she is not the most perceptive being anymore. She is a very degenerated ghost, a very corrupted memory. Almost a fiend, in fact." Yojimbo warned him.

"There's nothing human left in her… she's just a ghost, keeping to her old haunts." Tidus gave his answer to Paine. They started toward the steps, and then suddenly they beheld the apparitions of Braska, Jecht and Auron, one last time. They saw the final argument between them, and how Auron tried desperately to dissuade them. Tidus beheld his father's last wishes then, and his decision to follow through with the pilgrimage. His heart trembled, and he did not know what to make of it. Yojimbo spoke to him with encouragement.

"Leave the past for now; that account will be settled soon. For now, we must dispatch the witch." He prompted Tidus. Paine spoke to him in a soft and gentle voice.

"Tidus… I'm sorry about what happened to your father. I know it hurts…" She said.

"Thank you... Now you understand, why I have to release him. I have to finish what he started; the end of Sin." He said to her. Tidus tightened his grip on his spear, and he walked up the steps.

As they arrived on the platform, standing high under the stars, they saw the Lady turn to face them. She had a disconcerting smile on her face, and spoke with her oblivious, unwavering voice.

"Come closer, child, you and your companion. Now it is time for you to receive the Final Fayth." She said, stretching her arms and open hands out to them. Tidus shook his head.

"That's not why we've come. We're here to put an end to the cycle of Sin, forever." Tidus said to her. Lady Yunalesca paused for a long moment, and finally cocked her head to one side, as if she was actually aware of him for the first time.

"What you propose is… odd. In fact, blasphemous. There can be no end to Sin, poor child. Sin is eternal." She said to him.

"There _will_ be an end to Sin, and there will be and end to _you_." Tidus said firmly. Lady Yunalesca turned a severe glare upon him from her fiery red eyes, but then abruptly she laughed with a high-pitched, almost devilish cackle.

"You could never defeat me alone, child. But fear not… I shall relieve you of your delusions!" She said, and then suddenly the stone floor shook, and her long wispy white hair began to multiply and writhe into the shape of fearsome serpents. The floor cracked open, and under her feet a giant Medusa head raised up, lifting her high in the air. The snakes surrounding this green, demonic head were whipping about viciously and baring their long fangs.

"I'll give you a Fayth to pray to, in your despair! Hahaha!" Lady Yunalesca declared with a wicked laugh, and she pointed her long-nailed finger at Paine. Then suddenly the Medusa turned its eyes upon Paine, and a flashing beam shot forth and fell upon her before she could move. Instantly Paine was turned to stone. Tidus screamed in terror-stricken agony. He ran to the statue and embraced it, but it would not move. He sank to the floor at the feet of the statue, and wept with unsurmountable sorrow. In his head he suddenly heard an overpowering voice, that of Yojimbo.

"She's not dead! You fight for her freedom now, as well as ours! Stand up, boy! Defend yourself!" The old warrior spirit commanded him. Tidus steeled himself then, feeling the fire of the Aeons burning within him, and he rose to his feet, standing face-to-face with Paine's statue. He heard Yunalesca laughing again from behind him.

"Are you so obstinate now, little boy? Perhaps you'll accept the truth now that you are alone…" She taunted him.

"I'm not alone!" Tidus roared fiercely. He turned to face her, and his figure glowed with an intense magical light. Yunalesca regarded him differently then, and she pointed her finger to direct the Medusa's gaze upon him next. Tidus tossed up his spear and caught it as the point aimed forward, and then he hurled it. The spearhead flew into the left eye of the Medusa, blinding it, spurting black blood everywhere as the creature screeched in torment and recoiled backward. The snake heads coiled around the Medusa protectively, and tore out the spear, but her eye was ruined and remained shut, seeping out black blood from both corners. Lady Yunalesca shouted in fury at him.

"You'll suffer for that, you fool!" She cried. Tidus unsheathed his sword then and held it high, and the aura around him shone like a sun and shot two horizontal beams out from it, to his left and his right. Portals opened up there, and both Yojimbo and Bahamut manifested from them, stepping onto the battleground in their full glory and battle array. Yunalesca made a mocking jeer at him.

"I am far beyond an Aeon! I make Aeons and I can destroy them. Do you really think you can use them to defeat me!?" She cried.

"You're about to find out!" Tidus said, and then he lunged forward, bearing down upon her with his saber, while Yojimbo and Daigoro charged with him to the left, and Bahamut surged forth from his right. The battle that followed shook the whole coliseum, and changed forever the fate of Spira.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: The Age of Remphan**

In the ruins of the Zanarkand Coliseum, all was quiet apart from the soft whining of pyreflies and the steady pitter-patter of water drops, tumbling debris and soft breezes that penetrated through the doorways or crevices in the walls. Occasionally the murmuring of ghosts could be heard, reliving over and over their fading memories. All was calm now, after the rumblings of battle.

Deep within the inner sanctum of the old coliseum, Tidus fell to his knees on the stone floor. Black blood was pooled everywhere on the floor, and it dripped from his blade. Yojimbo and Bahamut were both hunched over from their exhaustion. They soon began to fade into pyreflies and disperse, and flow back into Tidus' body. Their enemy was dead; Lady Yunalesca's form eroded into pyreflies and drifted away. The puddles and swirling streams of black blood began to steam, and evaporate in pyreflies. Tidus took hold of his torn left sleeve and damaged shoulder pad, and ripped them off. He crawled toward Paine's statue then and sat at her feet. As he gazed up at her face, suddenly he saw a golden light surround her, and the statue was transfigured into a Fayth. The Fayth had her likeness, not as she had stood just before the Medusa's gaze struck her, but rather she stood with her palms pressed together over her breasts, and a sublime countenance of serenity upon her face. The eyes of the Fayth were like red orbs of starlight. From her back there sprang three pairs of red, bat-like wings, descended from largest at the top to smallest at the bottom, arching majestically around her. She was clothed in a black leotard, leather boots and bracers. A black collar was around her neck, studded with glistening spikes. Beside the statue of her Fayth, two straight-bladed swords stood with their edges sunken into the floor, just within arms' length of her.

Tidus beheld this transformation in amazement, and he reached out his hand to touch the leg of her statue. As soon as he did he saw a flash, and then Paine's apparition stepped out of the statue and stood before him. Tidus fell back and sat on the floor below her.

"Paine!" He called to her.

"Tidus… you were right. I should have listened to you." She said.

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry for everything! I should have told you before we ever left Bevelle… this is all my fault!" he cried miserably. Paine was silent for a moment, but she spoke with a gentle and compassionate voice.

"I never would have forgiven you if you had. I never would have traded the moments we shared together for anything, in this world or any other. Now I understand, and I have peace. Now I want to go with you to finish the quest. Tidus… please do take me with you!" She implored him. Tidus wiped his face finally and agreed.

"I will. I want you to be with me when I face Sin, and my father. I don't think I could do it now, without your help…" He admitted. Paine nodded and reached down her hands upon the sides of his face. Her apparition began to glow with golden light, and Tidus could feel her spirit merging into his body. Tidus could feel a warm and friendly presence about him, in a way that he had never felt before. He could tell that this presence was a kindred spirit to him in a way unlike any of the other Aeons he had communed with. He could tell without a doubt that this spirit was Paine's. He opened his eyes again, and saw that her apparition was gone. He heard her voice in his head.

"I'm here… let's move on, Love." She whispered to him.

"I'm ready." He replied, and he stood up and walked down the steps to leave the coliseum and continue his last mission.

In Guadosalam, Setanta's army was shifting and murmuring with anxiety. He had been brought back to the city a day ago, and carried into his manor by his father and the old warrior Auron. Neither Setanta nor his young wife had been seen outside of the manor since. Suldane was among them often, and he had told them of the attack on Luca by Sin itself. Conchubar had been among them, and he told them of the miracle of the Angel that had been morphed to stone by Sin's onslaught, and he presented to them the jeweled tears of mercy he had collected at its feet. Suldane forbade them from leaving to visit the statue, however, for the time being. Naturally, without their mighty leader who had brought them so far, and in whom they had placed their faith to defeat Sin, they were restless and worrisome.

Setanta would not have any more of it, however. He forced himself to rise to his feet, in spite of Yuna's pleading and protesting.

"You're not well yet! You need to rest!" She said to him insistently.

"My men have to know that I am still able to finish the campaign… and I must begin my observances of the Lord, as Conchubar instructed me." He said, no less determined than he had always been in such matters.

"I'm going with you then!" She demanded. Setanta put on his boots and his cloak, and made himself presentable in front of the mirror.

"I'd be glad to have you with me. Let's go." He replied plainly. They walked slowly down the staircase then, and Yuna held onto his arm. Setanta walked a bit clumsily, still sore and feeling faint, yet he was determined to show his presence and meet Conchubar in the Guado spirit-shop where he had set up his abode in the city. As soon as they stepped through the double doors of the mansion, immediately a group of warriors spotted them and approached to greet Setanta. They all saluted him in reverence and relief. Setanta saluted them and then shook their hands, with all the strength of grip he could muster. He stood upright and did what he could to appear in good health. Yuna finally tugged him away, and he waved farewell to his men as they continued to the shop. On the way Yuna spoke to him.

"Are you doing alright?" She asked.

"I'm fine… I really miss Brutus though…" He admitted, breathing heavily as he walked.

"We didn't see him anywhere when we found you…" Yuna said softly.

"I know. He faded out a while before you arrived. He was badly wounded, but he crawled up out of Luca to find me. He laid there with his head on my lap, all night until dawn. I was so glad to have him there… I don't think I'll ever meet another soul quite like him. He was brave, noble, but gentle. Incredibly loyal. It really is a shame… but I'm sure he's off to better things now." Setanta remarked drearily. Yuna held his hand, and kissed his upper arm. Setanta looked upon her with a faint smile, and they continued onward until they made it to the door of the shop, and stepped inside.

A dark, warm and fragrant realm greeted them, lit by candles and lanterns. They saw the old Guado supplies on the shelves and tabletops, including various herbs, spices and salts, drugs, incense, colored candles with magical uses, and magical implements. Conchubar was there, preparing an altar. When they entered he turned around to greet them.

"You shouldn't be walking around, boy. You ought to rest." Conchubar chided him.

"I tried to tell him that…" Yuna piped up, and Setanta turned his gaze upon, as if betrayed. She was quiet then. Conchubar grinned faintly.

"Well, since you are here, I suppose we might as well begin." He said. He turned and prepared the final implements of his altar. Upon a table with a red cloth spread over it, he had placed a basin of pure water and two candles beside it, a branch of fig leaves, some offerings of fruits, nuts, herbs and spices, and a curious-looking jar made of tinted glass and sealed up at the top with a large glass cap of the same properties. Within this jar there were floating pyreflies, half a dozen of them that slowly drifted through the container, and every once in awhile they would coalesce into a bright red orb. Setanta and Yuna were both utterly surprised and shocked by this.

"What is that?" Setanta asked.

"It seems that the Guado have devised some method of capturing and bottling spirits. They have made this special glass to contain them. This one is the spirit of a fiend." Conchubar told them.

"Surely it is a blasphemy! A crime against the ways of the universe!" Setanta said, utterly dismayed. Conchubar lifted a finger and motioned for him to remain still and quiet.

"Wait and watch, good Setanta." Conchubar urged him. He took the small leather pouch from his sash, in which he had collected the blue teardrop gems. He took one, and let it drop into the basin of water. The surface of the water began to glow with blue light, teeming with magic. Conchubar waited until the pyreflies had separated again before he took the fig branch and doused its leaves, and then uncapped the bottle briefly to shake in a few drops. The whining of the pyreflies changed pitch and they suddenly began to glow blue rather than yellow, and their rainbow-colored trails changed bright blue as well. They recombined into a brilliant blue soul, shining resplendently.

"Now it's the soul of a saint." Conchubar spoke with satisfaction. Setanta and Yuna both gasped in wonderment.

"It's a miracle!" Setanta said aloud.

"Indeed, it is. The sublime purity and divine mercy contained within these teardrop gems, fashioned by sacrifice and true devotion, have made possible a magnificent spiritual magic. This is how we must prepare for the final battle against Sin. Now, both of you sit quietly and observe." Conchubar said to them, and he turned to conduct the ritual. He threw sage into the brazier next to the altar, and a few samples of the offerings as well. In front of the altar was a red, green and black flag, the colors of the Lord's covenant. An icon made of ebony wood had been carved into the shape of a six-pointed star, and it sat on the altar under the Lord's banner. Conchubar set down his staff and took up a wand, also made of ebony wood, intricately carved and inscribed with sacred symbols. He waved the wand over the altar, whirling up the smoke of the incense around the star. Then he spoke a prayer.

"Lord of the Ringed Star, and keeper of the keys to the doors of the spirit, master of the paths of enlightenment, arbiter of powers, and king of the age of light! Remphan, I call upon you to make holy this altar, and these ablutions, and to guide our meditations of your holy grace!" Conchubar said, and then he took up the fig branch again and doused it in the shimmering waters of the basin, and he turned and pointed his wand first at Setanta, resting the end of it upon his shoulder while he shook the fig leaves over his head, and sprinkled him with the charmed water. He then turned to do the same for Yuna. Immediately they were both surrounded by an enlivened aura, and their spirits were lifted up in meditation. They had the first of many spiritual realizations to come; they could see the changing and transformative process of the universe, according to the will of Remphan and the delight of Nature itself. Then they knew that all things are whole, and nothing is truly lost.

The two of them sat in meditation on this truth for a long time, and only stirred finally when Conchubar tapped them each on the shoulder and instructed them to go back to the manor to rest, have a simple meal, and avoid any physical or mental disturbance that evening. He told them to return the next day again at the same time. Yuna and Setanta went back to the manor, only briefly but warmly speaking to those who greeted them along the way. When they walked up the stairs into their room, Yuna whispered enthusiastically to Setanta.

"That was incredible!" She said with a giddy smile.

"I know!" Setanta replied, smiling widely.

When they went into their bedchamber, Yuna took off Setanta's shirt and used her healing magic on him again. His fair skin was still bruised in some places, but after her touch rested upon them they were rendered clear and healthy again. Yuna traced her fingernails along his tattoos, as she was often prone to do when they were at rest together. These are the tattoos that are written upon Setanta, the warlord of the Red Blades and Champion of Remphan:

Upon his chest are two dark wolves, written in black, one of them aspected by blue coloration, and the other by red. On his stomach is written the hand of the Lord, with the six-pointed star of Remphan upon it. Upon his right arm is a coiling serpent, and upon its scales are written green glyphs and magic symbols. Over his shoulders, upper arms and upper back, there stretch a magnificent pair of dark-feathered wings. On his back is a pile of skulls, and rising from the top of them is a sword with a blue blade, and above it a crescent moon. On his lower back there stands a great red drake to the left, and a fierce black lion to the right. Upon his left arm there is a pile of weapons and skeletons, and at the top of them is a crest made of a round shield, with three fields; one red, one green, and one black. A sword and an axe are crossed behind this shield, and over it rest two ribbons… upon one is written in runes the name 'Murdoch' and on the other is 'Culain'.

Yuna rested her head upon his muscular chest, and they soon drifted off into sleep together. They slept through the night, until Rikku came to wake them in the morning. When she saw them lying together, she quietly waved and retreated back down the stairs without speaking. Yuna and Setanta got up and dressed, and went down to the dining hall to meet their friends and have a small, plain breakfast.

"You two are barely eating anything!" Rikku remarked in surprise.

"It's the diet of a monk for us, for the next week or two at least." Setanta replied, smiling and showing no sign of discontent.

"It's been wonderful so far!" Yuna said to her gleefully. Rikku merely shrugged.

"Well, more for me then… I'm guessing monks don't eat sweets or pie, or tea, right?" She asked eagerly.

"Nope. Help yourself." Setanta answered with a grin.

Yuna saw Auron sitting quietly at the other end of the table, next to Gippal and Luzzu. She dismissed herself momentarily and went to sit across from them.

"Good morning, Sir Auron. I'm glad to see you. Have you been getting along better with Suldane and his men?" She asked him. Auron forced himself to grin faintly, and he nodded.

"Oh yes indeed, he is quite the task master… reminds me of my training when I was young. I never thought I would have to put up with it again, as an old man." Auron said, a bit grumpily.

"I know he can be very harsh, and easily excitable, but he means well overall, I think." Yuna assured him. Auron smiled, and he appeared to be in reflection.

"What is it, Sir Auron?" She asked him curiously.

"Honestly, he reminds me of Jecht sometimes." Auron revealed. Yuna laughed.

"That's so funny, because I'm not sure I could ever picture him on a Yevonite pilgrimage…" Yuna said in amusement. Auron chuckled, but was quiet. After a while, Yuna prompted him to speak more.

"Sir Auron… I know you've been through a lot. Can you please tell me what happened to Wakka and Lulu? Where did they go? Did they make it out… from Operation Mi'ihen?" Yuna asked him. Auron nodded.

"Yes, they survived. Lulu was crippled, though. Her right leg was broken. Wakka said he needed to take her home; he wasn't sure if she would be able to walk again. He asked me to tell you… not to waste your life on Yevon's game. It seems I don't have to tell you that now, thankfully." Auron said. Yuna was somewhat distraught, but knowing that they were both alive still comforted her. She was glad to know that there was a reason they had not come along to find her.

"I'm glad to know that they are alright. Lulu is strong… I think she will recover. Once this is all done and over with, I'll go to visit them. Maybe I can heal her, too. But you won't come along, will you, Sir Auron?" She asked him, a bit melodramatically. Auron shook his head.

"No, I think I would be out of place in Besaid. I'll be out of place, really, once this is all done. But that's nothing for you to worry about. The future of Spira belongs to you, and your generation, and the next one to come, Yuna. Don't let anything hold you back from embracing life." He said to her. Yuna nodded graciously.

"Thank you, Sir Auron. I'm glad to have met you! I'm proud that you chose to become my guardian. I wish you good luck!" She said warmly, and she sat smiling as they ate their meals slowly in silence. After a while, Gippal spoke to her next.

"So, would you mind if I ask… who is that Al-Bhed girl sitting with your husband?" He asked sheepishly.

"She's my cousin, Rikku! I've only just recently found her. She's very sweet, but she has a sour side as well. I wouldn't try to be sly with her; she sees right through it." Yuna advised him. Gippal nodded.

"Oh certainly; I'm the most honest guy I know." Gippal assured her with an innocent grin.

After their meal, Setanta and Yuna went back to visit Conchubar again, and this time they noticed that all of the jars along the back wall that had previously contained fiend-spirits, were now glowing blue with placid light. They observed another ritual and meditated with the Shaman again, and left with another piece of the cosmic puzzle, and feeling even lighter and more elevated than the previous day. They continued this schedule for two weeks, until each of the fourteen teardrop gems had been used once, and then they rested for two days. On the second day, Yuna awoke from a dream and felt a wash of realization sweep her. She sat up in the bed, and Setanta soon woke as well.

"What is it, Love?" He asked her. Yuna gasped and was frozen in awe for a moment, but when he touched her shoulder she spoke.

"I had a vision… I saw where we need to go! The Lord showed me, and now I know what we have to do!" She said triumphantly. Setanta cheered and embraced her tightly, and they both hurried to get dressed and find Conchubar. After Yuna told him of her vision, Conchubar combed his white beard with his old weathered fingers, and a light of realization glowed in his wise blue eyes.

"Indeed, it is a revelation! Go and summon the others to the council room! We must tell them at once!" Conchubar instructed them. Setanta ran through the streets of Guadosalam, calling for his lieutenants and his father. When they had all gathered around the conference table, Conchubar and Yuna stood before them in the middle of the hall.

"What's going on, Conchubar? Have you received a sign?" Suldane asked him impatiently. Conchubar raised his staff and motioned for everyone to settle down.

"Not me, good Suldane. But it seems that Lord Remphan has bestowed the second-sight upon Yuna… she is one of his wise women now." Conchubar declared proudly. Suldane and his warriors cheered loudly and whooped throughout the hall. Conchubar raised his staff again and waited until they were quiet, so that Yuna could speak.

"I saw the clouds parting from Mount Gagazet, and there was an old fortress at the summit. In the middle of this fortress there is a chamber, where a giant crystal descends from the ceiling. In the vision, an Angel told me that this chamber was a field-generator, and that it sends the thoughts and wishes of whoever is inside it, out across the mountain and all of Spira. He showed me, how to use it to form a protective barrier, to shield us all from Sin's magical attacks. I saw the whole army gathered there, and a final battle against Sin and its spawn. I saw Setanta and a few of his men flying to attack Sin in the sky. There will be one last battle in a city in the sky..." Yuna revealed to them.

"The city on Sin's back… remnants of old Zanarkand." Conchubar suggested.

"Flying to fight Sin? Flying on what?" Suldane asked.

"Black birds…" Yuna replied. Raven immediately stood up.

"If my people can be of service to the Lord, you have but to ask, Setanta." She offered him.

"Yes… I think it is clear now, why you have been spared. Go to your homeland and bring us back as many of the Zu birds as you can." Setanta said to her. Raven saluted him firmly, and then she and her lieutenants left the room swiftly on their mission.

"The barrier will protect us from Sin's wrath, but the fiends will still be able to siege the mountain, I presume." Suldane surmised aloud. Yuna nodded.

"Yes. That's the way I saw it in my vision. They will have to be held at bay, while I channel the Lord's magic through the crystal in the central chamber." Yuna told him.

"There are many passes that lead around the mountain, and several that lead up to the summit. No one but the Ronso have ever explored so high up, and only a few at that." Kelk Ronso said then.

"You'll have to send your braves to scout around the summit, and find this hidden fortress. If it is to be revealed soon, then we will post scouts to watch from the edge of the Macalania woods, and send word to us as soon as the clouds have parted." Setanta said. Kelk nodded, and took Biran and Yenke with him to lead their warriors back to Mount Gagazet. Setanta then turned to Luzzu and his Crusaders, among them were Clasko, Elma, and Lucille.

"Is there anyone else who will come to our aid for this final campaign?" Setanta asked. Luzzu gave his answer.

"There are some men among the refugees from Luca, who are willing to fight. We can arm them and give them some basic training. A few of the remaining Crusaders have come back in the last couple weeks, and asked to join with us. There's not many of them, but I could send out riders to look for more volunteers." He offered.

"Do it, and tell them to move quickly. They should return here within a week's time. We don't know exactly when the clouds will clear, but when they do we must march to Mount Gagazet immediately. It is time for this war to come to an end, and the Calm to begin." Setanta said to him. Luzzu and his lieutenants saluted Setanta, and they went to carry out his orders. Setanta turned next to his tribal warlords.

"As for the chieftains… you have been with me from the start of this campaign. Now we are near the end… I hesitate to ask more of you, but I know that you are dedicated beyond any doubt. What do you need to prepare for the final battle?" Setanta asked them. Chief Barbay spoke up first.

"A few more warriors and young war pups have arrived from our clan lands. That gives us some fresh strength, but we've lost a good amount of men so far. I'm willing to throw everything in for one last charge." Barbay said. Setanta nodded and saluted him. Jericho spoke next.

"I lost more men and birds at Luca than I had hoped I would. I think this is the end of the Marauders, whether we win or lose. I'll come with you myself, with a couple squads of volunteers, but I'm giving the rest of my men the option to go home to their families." Jericho said. Setanta saluted him as well, and then turned to face Gippal and Captain Kern.

"What about the Al-Bhed? You said you would reconsider your alliance with us when it came to fighting Sin. What have you decided?" He asked them.

"Well, now it seems like we might have a chance, so I'll stick around. If you want me to, I can go back to my ship and try to make contact with Cid from Bikanel Island. I don't know if he'll help us, but I'll try to convince him. Then I'll come back to join you here." Gippal offered. Setanta nodded and saluted him. He looked upon Kern, and the scarred old captain had a stern look on his face.

"I will go back to my ship, and sail to the northern islands above Wilderia. There are men on the isle of Cale Albia who are brave fighters. They might be willing to help now that the end of Sin is almost here. We shall see, if they are willing to leave home or not…" Kern said. Setanta looked upon him curiously, but in the end he nodded and saluted him. Kern and Gippal both left then. Setanta was left with Yuna and her friends, and with Suldane and Conchubar.

"Well now… the end of this journey is coming fast. What more can we do?" Setanta asked them.

"Share this time together, with love and laughter!" Yuna said to him cheerfully.

"The end of this journey is only the beginning of another one. Keep that in mind, good Setanta." Conchubar reminded him.

"I say we build a roaring fire, and drink up while we can!" Suldane suggested. Setanta laughed in amusement.

"I second that… it's been a while since I've drunk the wine of victory and dined on the meat of boars and deer." Setanta said eagerly. Conchubar gently discouraged him from it, however.

"You should plan the feast before our march to Gagazet, Setanta… but before that time comes, there is still one last ritual we must perform, to ask the Lord to bestow his battle-magic upon you. We should attend this ritual with purity of body and clarity of mind. Once it is completed, then you will be ready for anything." Conchubar assured him. Setanta agreed, and they went to prepare. As Setanta walked through the streets with Conchubar, he asked one more important question.

"So we know where we will confront Sin… but how can we draw it to us?" He asked.

"I think I may know a way." Conchubar said as he opened the door to the shop and they stepped inside. He took Setanta to the back storeroom, and there were many more jars of fiend-spirits lining the walls. "The Guado were quite prolific in their harvesting of spirits. If we take these captured fiends to the mountain with us and place them in the central chamber, they will project a signal that Sin will not be able to ignore. Once Sin arrives, if these spirits are then converted, they shall assist Yuna in her channeling of the protective barrier. Then we shall be unstoppable!" Conchubar surmised. Setanta grinned triumphantly at this proposal. They went back into the ritual chamber then, and Conchubar prepared the altar. He lit the candles and incense, and knelt before the icons and made a prayer.

"Lord Remphan, our divine benefactor… the time of your age is drawing nearer and nearer. We have with us the one whom you have chosen. Lord, will you now bestow the battle-powers upon your Champion, for this last great battle in your name?" Conchubar beseeched his Lord. A voice echoed in the room then, and spoke to them.

"More is yet required of the boy, Setanta. One last pilgrimage must be made. He must travel back to the plains of Mi'ihen, to the icon of the fallen angel. He must go into the ruins of Luca and recover the sword that was given to him, and then take it to place at the feet of the angel's statue. Once he is there, I shall send him three blessings, and this will be all that he requires to do his duty." The voice of the Lord said. Conchubar and Setanta both bowed low before the altar, and then the spirit of the Lord left the room. They quietly rose up, and went out into the city of Guadosalam. They returned to the yard in front of the mansion, and met Suldane, Yuna and her friends there.

"Are you done already?" Suldane asked, bewildered. Setanta shook his head.

"No. The Lord has sent me back to Mi'ihen, to recover my lost sword and receive his blessings there at the angel's statue on the road to Luca. I have to go there soon. Conchubar, how shall I proceed this time?" Setanta asked his old mentor humbly.

"You should go alone, with only a few of your own men, and go in perfect somberness and reflection. Leave today, and neither be hasty nor sluggish on the way. Return as soon as you have completed your task, and don't tarry for any reason." Conchubar instructed him. Yuna spoke up with concern.

"Must he really go alone?" She asked.

"Yes. The Lord has told him to go back for a reason, and he must understand why. He will need to contemplate this on his own." Conchubar replied firmly. Everyone submitted to his reasoning, and prepared everything for Setanta's departure, and then he left with three of his best men mounted on chocobos and with a few day's supplies. Yuna stood alone at the edge of the plaza with Rikku close behind her, watching as Setanta rode swiftly out of sight. After he was gone, Yuna was about to turn back to the entrance of the city, but something caught her eye then. Two people were approaching on the road from the Moonflow. As she watched them more closely, she could see that one of them was a fairly tall woman with dark attire and long dark hair, but pale skin. She was walking with a limp, and using a black cane to assist her. Beside her was a big man dressed in bright yellow. Yuna knew them then; it was Wakka and Lulu. Yuna immediately ran to meet them.

Yuna embraced Lulu with a warm hug as soon as she reached her. Lulu held her tight, and Wakka wrapped his arms around her as well. Yuna soon noticed that more people were with them. Some she recognized from Besaid, others had come from Kilika. Lulu looked quite a bit different now. She was clothed in a short black skirt and her white legs were bare, apart from a black leather brace that was bound to her crippled right leg. She wore a sleeveless black shirt and a dark gray shawl over her shoulders and breasts. Her long hair was flowing loose down her back and over her breasts, apart from a few braids that flowed down with it. She wore black leather boots and tall white-lace stockings. Her red-amber eyes were softer and more gentle, perhaps, and also tinged with a tired and somber light.

"Lulu! Wakka! I was worried I might not see you again for a long time! Auron told me that you survived and went back to Besaid. He said you were injured… how did you come back here?" Yuna asked Lulu.

"We never made it back to Besaid, actually. We stayed in Luca for awhile, and then went to Kilika temple. I rested there and tried to recover. The priests and healers did what they could, but I'm still crippled after all. We heard about what happened to Bevelle, and then Luca, and we decided that we needed to come back to Spira to help. We heard that an army was stationed here, protecting refugees and preparing to launch an assault on Sin. We even heard rumors that you were here, that you had gotten married and converted to some new religion. Tell me Yuna… is it true?" Lulu asked her. Yuna hesitated for a moment. She never thought this moment would come like it had. She expected to find them in Besaid, once Sin was gone and everything was settled for good. Now she found it difficult to face Lulu, the only woman close to being her mother-figure. She had always looked to Lulu for guidance and encouragement, but now she feared she would only find disapproval and scorn. She would never have been able to face her before, but now that the Lord's grace rested upon her, she was not shaken from her resolve.

"It is true. I have much to tell you, if you will hear it. I know it may not be what you had wanted, but it was out of my hands, and now it has worked out the way it was meant to. There's no way to take it back, and no reason to try." Yuna told her solemnly. Lulu gazed upon her for a long moment in contemplation.

"I see… I heard that you had been kidnapped. I don't blame you for that. But now, don't you see that the pilgrimage must be finished? Don't you see that Sin's rampage has gone far enough? I never wanted you to start the pilgrimage, but now… can't you see it must be done?" Lulu asked her, almost pleaded with her. Yuna shook her head slowly.

"There will be no more pilgrimages. I hardly doubt that there could be. Djose temple was destroyed by the Guado, Bevelle temple was obliterated by Sin. Who knows how many more Yevon temples will fall? But that's not even the matter at hand now. Yevon is finished. The Maesters are all dead. Now Setanta and his army, and our Lord of the coming age, are the only hope left for Spira. This will be the end of Sin for good, and there will never be another pilgrimage or another sacrifice. I know it is hard to accept, but it is the truth. I can show you, if you want to see." Yuna offered to her. Lulu's face was stern and dark.

"We're all doomed then. If no summoners are willing to challenge Sin, then Spira will be destroyed. You saw what happened at Mi'ihen, don't you remember, Yuna? Man's arrogance can never defeat Sin. Only faith and sacrifice can alleviate our suffering. Only atonement can set us free. You were raised with these teachings! How can you turn on us now? When we need you the most!" Lulu cried in disdain.

"Lu, just calm down. It was the maesters who allowed Mi'ihen to happen…" Wakka tried to interject, but Lulu snapped at him.

"Don't you start with me now! Keep quiet! You were never serious about being a guardian! Don't try to blame anyone else!" Lulu shouted at him. Wakka recoiled from her and was silent. She saw Auron and Kimahri then, as they strode down the path and stood behind Yuna.

"You're all here too? Sir Auron, how could you allow this to happen?" She demanded. Auron shrugged indifferently.

"Not much I could have done to stop it. You're forgetting, that I was there on the last pilgrimage, when Braska and Jecht gave up their lives, and it achieved nothing! Their lives were wasted! Good men died for a lie! If you think the answers still lie with Yevon then go to Zanarkand and see for yourself. But as far as I'm concerned, it's better to take a chance on something new. We're going to fight Sin and move on, to Hell or to the Eternal Calm. Either way, I know where I'm heading." Auron said to her remorselessly.

"I can't believe this! You've all betrayed us, now of all times! I won't settle for this! I'll find another summoner, and make sure they finish the pilgrimage! I'll be the Final Fayth myself!" Lulu proclaimed hysterically.

"Lulu! Let me heal you! Then you'll see for yourself!" Yuna begged her. Lulu stepped back and raised her cane, wobbling to stand upright. She pointed it at Yuna, to keep her at bay.

"Don't come near me! I won't be led astray by any of you!" Lulu said fiercely. She tried to step back then, but she stumbled and fell over onto her back. Yuna rushed forward to catch her, but fell over onto her and grabbed her crippled leg. Yuna summoned up her magic then, in desperate compassion for her old mentor and guardian. The powers flowed through her, and she could see and hear Lulu's twisted leg straighten and come back into place, as ligaments healed and tendons were reset. Lulu cried out in shock, rather than in pain, and in that moment she realized that she had been wrong. She began to weep and sob, and Yuna crawled to sit with her and embrace her closely.

"Yuna! I'm sorry for everything! I'm sorry that I didn't stop the pilgrimage… I'm sorry that I doubted you! I should have known your heart would always be on the right path…" Lulu said to her with deep regret and sorrow.

"That's over with now, Lulu. We'll be free soon. You'll see." Yuna said, attempting to comfort her. They wept together for a long time, until their friends collected them up and took them into Guadosalam.

The next day, Setanta had arrived on the road just outside of Luca. As he and his men passed by the solemn statue of the angel, they saluted their comrades who kept watch over it. After speaking with them briefly, Setanta continued alone on foot until he reached the steps of the city. Debris and rubble were scattered everywhere, but the steps were still usable. He walked down to the lower platforms just outside of the marketplace. He searched amid the rubble, looking across the corners and dilapidated stonework. He saw it then, where it had dropped from his grasp, over the fencing on the platform above. His sword stood in the rubble, with the end of the blade in the ground and the pommel pointed skyward. The sword must have been touched by Sin's magic, because it too had been turned obsidian black. Setanta stepped up to the sword, reached out his hand and took hold of it firmly, and withdrew it from the ruins. It felt a bit different in his grasp then, and the dark glint of the blade held a strange power within it.

Setanta went back up the steps then, leaving the wasted city of Luca behind him, and he went back to the statue of the fallen angel and knelt before it, laying his sword down at its feet. As he knelt there he spoke the words that he felt.

"Lord, I was devoted to you, and I was triumphant. Then I was careless, and I suffered. I purified myself, and beheld your truths. Now I am humbled before you, and I seek redemption. I am ready to abide by your will, at any cost." Setanta said aloud before the statue. As he spoke these words, he could see a glinting reflection sweeping across the clouds, like sunlight reflecting off of silver or steel. An angel came floating down from the sky then, and landed by the statue. Setanta faced this messenger of Lord and bowed low. The angel spoke to him then.

"Setanta, the Lord has heard your prayer and observed your devotions to him. He has sent me to bestow three powers upon you, and the first of these powers is the agility of the wind…" The angel said, and then he presented an orb that was almost completely transparent, yet visibly flowed and gusted like a gale of wind. He sent this orb floating over Setanta's head, and it descended into his crown and flowed throughout his body, filling his lungs and invigorating him.

"The second of these powers, is the might of the thunderclap…" The angel said, and he sent forth a lightning orb, which floated over Setanta and down into the crown of his head, filling him with overwhelming energy and power.

"The third and last of these powers is a heart like a golden star…" The angel said, and he sent forth a fiery golden orb, which drifted straight toward Setanta's chest and delved into his heart, and suddenly he felt invincible, and invulnerable to all fear or doubt. The angel spread his wings then and departed back into the sky, vanishing in the clouds. Setanta stood on his feet then, unable to keep still with the surge of energy that had been sent into him.

"Are you alright, Sir?" One of his men asked him. Setanta smiled widely and laughed in triumphant vigor.

"I'm far beyond 'alright' Lads! I've never felt such power before!" Setanta said, and he went sprinting across the plains, laughing as he did, fast as the wind. His men cheered and laughed, and when he came back he jumped right up into the saddle of his chocobo and rode away toward Guadosalam, his men cheering behind him as he went.

One week later, many volunteers and old Crusaders came walking into Guadosalam. There were more of them than expected. It served to further encourage the ranks of Setanta's army, along with the display of his newly granted abilities. He beamed with power and confidence at all times, and his wife and close friends all reflected his glory in their own joy and mirth, and captivation with his presence. A couple days later, Raven and her Black Eagles came riding back across the Thunder Plains on their giant black Zu's. Gippal and his Al-Bhed returned as well. Very few of Jericho's men had chosen to leave, and Barbay's ranks had increased. No one knew what had become of Kern and his men. Still, the army was in high spirits, and a few days after they had regrouped, the scouts from Macalania came to report that indeed, the clouds enshrouding the peak of Mount Gagazet had dispersed, and now the fortress atop it was clearly visible. Ronso messengers delivered news of Kelk's discoveries, and a path to the summit had been found. Setanta did not hesitate to give the orders to march then, and his army sprawled across the Thunder Plains and poured through Macalania woods, and regrouped on the fields of the Calm Lands.

In the Calm Lands trading post, Tidus was speaking with the owner of the shop. He brought a big satchel of gil with him from Yojimbo's hoard, and he dropped it onto the table in front of the shopkeep.

"What can I give ya' for that?" The shop owner asked.

"I sold you that blue bladed sword, when I came through here last time. I'd like it back now." Tidus said to him. The old man scratched his head and took the Brotherhood sword down from the rack on which it rested, and handed it over to Tidus. Having gotten what he came for, Tidus went back up toward the mountain pass, not noticing as the first ranks of the army began to enter the plains behind him. As he walked between the pillars of the Ronso pass, he found a young Ronso boy there. Tidus walked up to the young Ronso and held out another bag of gil.

"Will you do me a favor?" Tidus asked him. The Ronso boy nodded.

"If I give you this gil, will you take this sword to Besaid Island, and give it to a man named Wakka? If you don't find him there, then leave it in the temple of Besaid." Tidus instructed him. The Ronso boy nodded and took both the gil and the sword, and went walking down from the mountain. Tidus went onward then, back to the cave of Yojimbo. He sat in the main chamber, looking over the camp where he and Paine had lived together. He felt her presence guiding him, willing him to pick up the sphere that rested upon her bedroll. Tidus picked it up and held it next to his right ear. The waves of energy from the sphere entered his mind then, and he could see and hear Paine as she sat on her bunk in Kern's ship, so long ago on their journey together.

"He is really beautiful, handsome, and very sexy… but is that enough for a girl to make it through life with a boy nowadays? I don't know. I think there's more to him than that, though… I hope there is, at least." She said into the sphere. The door to the cabin opened then, and she quickly switched off the sphere. When it came on again, she was sitting behind a barricade on the Highbridge of Bevelle. Gunfire and the clanging of weapons was everywhere. Tidus could see himself in the background, several yards away from her and still holding back behind the barricade. He was only out of earshot because of the noise around them. Paine spoke into the sphere just loudly enough to be intelligible.

"I have to tell him soon, before it's too late. If I die first, then this will be my last record. I love you, Tidus!" She said. The sphere switched off again. When it came back on, he could see her lounging on the shore of the hot springs in Mount Gagazet, with just her upper chest above the water, and she looked into the sphere with a warm smile.

"You know, finally everything worked out perfectly. I can't possibly think of anything better than this. Love really is magic, I think. Nothing like this ever could have happened to me in my old life, before I had you, Tidus. No matter what happens from here on out, I'll never forget the time we spent together on the mountain. I actually found bliss… now I know that it's real. There's a meaning to life, after all. I love you… and I always will." She said. The sphere went dark then, and nothing more followed. Tidus returned from his trance then, and set the sphere gently back onto Paine's bedroll. He laid down on his own then, drifting into lonesome thoughts. He heard her voice whisper to him then.

"Now you know everything I wanted you to know. That was the last thing I needed to tell you." She said softly.

"Thank you. Now I'm ready for the end. I can go without regret." Tidus said aloud. He could hear a heavy sound then, and the faint, distant blasting of horns and marching drums. Tidus forced himself to get up then, and he went out of the cave to see what was happening. He could see an army passing over the bridges above.

At the front of their ranks, Suldane marched carrying a long pike with a flag bound to it. The long flag was was streaming majestically in the wind, waving its red and green colors, with black glyphs written across it. Suldane laughed uproariously, as he shook it from side to side.

"Your grandfather died under this flag, my boy! Now Sin will die under it! Hahaha!" Suldane declared proudly. Setanta laughed and took up his war horn, and produced a loud blast from it. To his other side, the chieftains were carrying their own flags; the yellow banner with a red wolf upon it, the standard of the Devil Dogs. The standard of the Mounted Marauders was a blue and red flag with a chocobo's talon in red upon it, and crossed spears above that, and a golden sun in the uppermost field of the banner. Conchubar, Yuna and their friends walked behind them, and their soldiers in lines behind them, and their supply wagons and cannons trailing in the rear. Kelk and his Ronso braves soon met them, and helped guide them up the mountain passes to the trail that would take them to the summit.

They climbed up the mountainside, keeping to the narrow trail with the Ronso's help. Finally they did see the ruined old fortress, with its many broad platforms and tall curving arches. A glistening blue aura could be seen around the winding white tendirls at the top, shimmering against the bright blue sky above. They went up to the top of the fortress, and Setanta and Yuna were the first to reach the upper plaza. It was a majestic place, and a blue stone pathway led between two clear pools under the upper arches and stone columns. At the end of it they could see the central chamber, and they knew it had to be the right place. They strode to the round, smooth plaza upon which it sat, and opened the intricate doors to the chamber. They stepped within to find the glass walls filled with shimmering waters, and a bright crystal descending from the ceiling over a pedestal in the center of the room. They walked up to this pedestal, sensing the energy vibrating from it as it hummed softly. A glistening red sphere rested in the pedestal. Yuna and Setanta gazed upon it curiously, until Conchubar and Suldane entered the chamber with them. The old sage took the sphere from the pedestal and tucked it away into his robes.

"This is the place, after all. Truly amazing!" Conchubar said in awe.

"If this is it, then I'll tell the men to bring those Guado jars into the chamber with you, along with your ritual tools. I'm going back down the mountain, to assemble our troops on the passes. We'll send messengers back and forth, to keep in touch. Good luck Yuna, and Conchubar. Son… I'll see you again." Suldane said confidently, and then he left the chamber.

"I have to go supervise the men, and make sure that Raven and her riders are ready to take flight at any moment. Yuna, I'll see you soon, Love." Setanta said to her, and he took her in his mighty arms and kissed her many times before he released her.

"Setanta… come back to me. No matter what, come back. I need you, and there's still so much left that I have to share with you…" Yuna said anxiously. Setanta smiled warmly.

"We know how we feel about each other. It's not so important to say it. I will come back, so don't worry yourself about that… just focus on protecting our people." Setanta reminded her. Yuna nodded, and waved to him once more. Setanta turned and left the chamber then. Several of his men entered, bringing the jars with the fiend-spirits inside them, and laying them around the chamber. They also brought a basin of water to Conchubar, and he set it in place. He had brought a small, ornate white brush with him, to use for sprinkling the water, and the satchel of teardrop gems as well. Soon all of the vessels were inside the chamber, and the energy it began to emanate was obviously shifting to a powerful and dark aura.

"It won't be long now…" Conchubar said to Yuna. "Prepare yourself!"

Suldane, Auron and the rest of the warriors went marching across the mountainside to take their positions on all of the major passes, blocking any possible entry the fiends might take to reach the fortress. Riflemen, archers and cannoneers were also positioned on the fortress itself, to prevent winged fiends from landing upon it. The big Zu birds carried cannons up the mountain, and brought them down where they were needed. Then Raven and two of her comrades landed on the side of the fortress, waiting for Setanta to join them.

On the snowy pass, Suldane stood before his men and held his axe, and he looked up to the sky upon the bright blue star of Remphan, now visible even during the day. He spoke a prayer then, aloud so his men could hear and take courage.

"Lord, you know me, and I've been blessed to have known you. You have seen that I was always the underdog in life, but like any tenacious dog, I never backed down or ran from a fight, especially not when my honor was at stake, and when I called upon your name to aid me. Now I'm here for you, Lord, and live or die, I'll be happy to go out fighting, and I'll gladly send hundreds of bastard-spawn screaming into Hell!" Suldane proclaimed, and his men laughed and cheered merrily.

His words gave them morale, but they all felt the uneasiness brought about by the aura coming from the fortress. They waited for some time on the mountain, but before long they could see a giant figure coming across the sky, and drifting over the Calm lands.

"It's Sin!" Some of the men began shouting.

"Finally! I thought it would chicken out!" Suldane called, and again his men burst with laughter. They blasted their horns, and battle-calls sounded all over the mountain. Lulu and Rikku came into the chamber where Yuna and Conchubar sat in meditation, to warn them that Sin had arrived.

"Sin is here! It will attack soon!" Lulu said frantically as she came into the chamber. Conchubar stood up then and took out his satchel of teardop gems, and poured them all into the large copper vessel filled with pure water. He took out his ritual brush then, and dipped it into the gleaming blue water. He began sprinkling it into the jars one by one, and swiftly the character of the spirits within began to change. Yuna remained in deep meditation until he had finished his task, and then he sat down on the other side of the pedestal, facing her. Yuna raised her hands then, and began channeling her protective magic into the space between the pedestal and the point of the large crystal. A purple orb of magic materialized between her hands then, and began to flood up into the crystal.

Outside of the chamber, the aura surrounding the high tendrils of the fortress began to change into a purple haze, and it expanded, encircling the whole mountain. Setanta beheld this miracle, and he saw Sin drawing closer. The titan Sin began to charge up a dark orb above its head, and then suddenly released it. The black magic came surging toward them in a massive beam, but when it touched the barrier it immediately dispersed. Setanta could hear cheers and shouts of triumph ringing out all over the fortress and the rest of the mountain. Sin shifted in the sky then, as if realizing that its magical wrath was now rendered impotent, and it instead began to attack conventionally.

Seedlings and spores began to drop from Sin's flesh then, and plummeted down onto the Calm Lands and the mountain passes below. All manner of vile fiends began to sprout from these spores, and they came rushing up the mountain by any path they could take. Suldane and his men were the first deterrent between them and the fortress. "Get ready Lads! This is it!" Suldane shouted, and he waded through the ranks and took his place at the front, standing firm in the middle of the pass with his axe in both hands. His men formed a wedge behind him, shaped like an arrow head with Suldane at the very tip. Spearheads extended over his shoulders, pointing at the enemy, and riflemen knelt beside him aiming their barrels forward. Auron stepped forward then, forming another point with his katana at the ready. Suldane and Auron saluted each other one last time, then turned to face the oncoming enemy. Suldane gripped his axe firmly and turned his placid gray eyes upon the charging fiends. He was fully ready to fight and die for the cause. (The fiend-battle theme is "Vaid Vaprust" by Metsatoll)

The waves of fiends came dashing up the pass, and when they met with the warriors holding their ground, such a clash ensued that avalanches came pouring down the mountainside, and it toppled the lower ranks of the fiends. Suldane and Auron held the front, fighting fiercely to keep the enemy at bay, and nothing got past them. Up on the fortress platforms, Setanta went to join Raven and her companions where they perched on the ledge, ready to take flight. He rushed toward her and climbed up onto the saddle on the Zu's back, sitting behind Raven and holding on securely.

"Let's go now! We don't have time to waste!" Setanta shouted to her.

"Hold on then! This will be a rough ride!" Raven replied, and she pulled on the reigns to urge her bird to take flight. The flapping of giant black wings propelled them over the ledge, and lifted them up as the fiend-bird carried them across the sky. Sin released a mass of flying fiends then, and Raven's companions surged ahead to keep a path clear for them. More of her Black Eagle comrades came riding up from the mountainside to join them in the flight to assault Sin. There was a clash of the two opposing squadrons, and flying fiends came soaring by, almost striking Setanta and Raven. Several of her companions were buffeted by them, and a few dropped from the sky to the ground below. More of the fiends were coming, while those who had passed them went on toward the mountain fortress to be met by a volley of gunfire.

Setanta was holding onto the leather straps of the saddle, clinging with a death grip. He had never imagined in his life that he would be borne across the sky in such a way, perilous and glorious all at once. They were bearing down upon Sin, but suddenly the megalithic creature began to shift and fly away to one side, on its way around the mountain. Sin went floating around Mount Gagazet in a circle, dropping more fiends everywhere to surround the warriors on the passes. Then it came around again and went over the Calm Lands, filling the fields with fiend spores. Soon the plains were covered with teeming dark masses of the twisted creatures. Setanta and Raven found themselves entangled in a sky battle, while Suldane and Auron struggled on the mountainside below.

"Don't you have anything to fight back with?" Setanta shouted.

"Take my rifle and use it!" Raven said to him. Setanta reached into the satchel beside the saddle with one hand and carefully freed the long-barreled rifle from its straps. Raven began trailing fiends then, while Setanta shot them down. Sin was hovering in the sky above the Calm Lands, keeping still for the moment. Then suddenly it began preparing another surge of magical power.

"We have to get behind the barrier! Now!" Setanta roared. Raven banked hard to one side, and a few of her companions followed suit. Others remained locked in a brutal fight in the open air. They barely made it back behind the magical curtain, when Sin released its wrath and disintegrated a whole cluster of fiends and Black Eagle warriors.

"I don't know how the hell we're going to pull through with this now!" Raven said desperately. They turned around to face Sin once more, still behind the protective barrier. It was lingering just out of their reach, and dropping more spawn by the minute. On the mountainside, Suldane and his men had receded into the cave passageways, still holding back the flood of fiends. The outside of the mountain was covered with them now. At the bottom of the canyon, Tidus could see some glimpses of what was happening. He knew it was time to act.

"Let's go; they need our help!" He said aloud. An aura of golden light surrounded him, and a ring of magical glyphs appeared before him. A portal opened then, and Paine's Aeon form stepped out from it. She smiled upon him, and wrapped him up in her arms as she took flight, carrying them upward with her crimson wings. Setanta could see something soaring up from out of the canyon, and it turned toward Sin.

"What is that? Some kind of fiend?" He asked, bewildered.

"Whatever it is, it's heading straight for Sin, and it's moving fast!" Raven replied. They watched as Sin conjured and released another blast, but the agile winged Aeon was easily able to dodge the attack. Paine carried Tidus swiftly over the distance between them, and she flew into the towers and ruined buildings atop Sin's massive back.

"They made it!" Raven shouted in amazement.

"Can you be evasive, like they were?" Setanta asked.

"On this hulking thing? No way. We'd never make it." She replied.

"We _have_ to make it…" Setanta muttered, discouraged. As he spoke, another object appeared in the sky to the west. Setanta squinted and stared at this floating thing, but had no idea what it was. Finally it dawned on him; it was a floating Al-Bhed ship. It was primarily white, with various colors and patterns upon it, and a large fan spinning towards its rear. It came drifting across the sky, while draping tarps hung below it. These began to open up, and a large protruding metal rail was revealed. This gleaming metal rail suddenly flashed, and shot a beam of burning energy directly into Sin's left arm, severing it. Sin let out a horrendous cry of agony then, and swiftly began turning to face its attacker.

"Now is our chance! Let's go!" Setanta shouted. Raven urged her mount onward, and they flew out of the barrier on the way toward Sin. As they flew desperately toward the titan fiend, they watched the airship drop bombs onto the Calm Lands, obliterating legions of fiends at once. Sin began dropping more of its spawn, but it focused its wrath upon the airship, just as it was banking to turn around for another assault. Sin shot another dark blast across the sky, just barely striking the side of the airship. Enough damage was done that the ship began to falter and fall from the sky and into the Macalania woods. The smoke from its trail rose high for miles through the forest. Sin began to turn around again, but by now they had nearly reached it. Raven guided her bird up over Sin's back, and they descended slowly onto the city streets of Zanarkand's old ruins. She made a landing on the pavement, and Setanta immediately jumped down. He gave her one last order.

"Get back to the fortress if you can! Tell them that I made it onto Sin! All they need to do now is hold the mountain and not do anything risky!" Setanta said to her.

"It's too late for that. You better hurry, Setanta. They won't be able to keep the fiends at bay forever, and no help is coming now. We already have all the warriors left in the world." She said to him bleakly.

"Then make sure they pull through! I'll be done here soon!" He shouted, and then he waved her off. Raven whipped her reigns then, and took off, flying away back toward the mountain.

As soon as he was alone, Setanta was shocked and unnerved by how quiet the city was. Apart from the faint roaring sound of the winds high up above, he was actually completely sealed off from the outer world. He didn't know where exactly to go, but he saw a tall tower and felt compelled to explore it. He walked through the empty streets, with his sword unsheathed and firmly in his grip. He had a creeping sensation in his spine, and was sure that danger lurked around one of the corners he would inevitably pass. Suddenly he heard a high-pitched laugh behind him, and he whirled around instantly to face it. He saw a fiend there, shaped like a man, with red armor and blue skin, and red horns arching above its head. The face of the fiend was familiar; it was the face of Seymour Guado.

"You again!" Setanta shouted spitefully.

"Have we met?" The high, effeminate voice replied. "Ahh yes, now I remember. You encountered my other half, didn't you? Hold on… I'll get him for you." The devil said, and suddenly its eyes rolled and its voice changed, becoming slightly more like the Guado's had been. "Yes, indeed, I remember you, Tribal. You made yourself quite an inconvenience to my plans, but now that is all behind me. In fact, I suppose you aided me… after you killed me, there was nothing to stop me from merging with Sin, once I had summoned enough bait for it, and once within I was able to seek out Yu Yevon himself. He was barely conscious when I found him… it was easy enough to mold him for my own purposes." The devil said to him.

"You're finally where you belong then… and now I can destroy both of you at once!" Setanta said, taking hold of his sword with both hands as he assumed a battle-stance.

"Indeed, Tribal, is that how you imagine this will end? How amusing…" The devil retorted with an inhuman chuckle.

"How would you have it end?" Setanta asked, curious for the moment.

"Well, with the total destruction of Spira and the utter annihilation of all life in the world, of course. That is after all, the only way to stop all of this madness. It is the only way to put an end to the suffering of life for good. You can't do that by destroying Sin, naive tribal man. You should have known better than to cross me. I'll only ensure your prolonged agony before I move on to my own goals!" The fiend said. Setanta faced the creature with a fiery gleam in his eyes and a fearsome grin.

"An end to _suffering_? Ha! You are a degenerate little coward after all! I always knew it! No more talk, weakling! I've come to smash you into oblivion!" Setanta thundered with a mighty laugh, and he lunged forward with his sword. The devil drew its long-bladed scimitar and leapt to engage him. The striking of their blades flashed and echoed through the streets of the ghostly city. (The theme of the final duel is "The Glory of Achilles" by Manowar.)

Meanwhile, in the tower atop Sin's back, Tidus had made his way to the highest floor. He came out onto the flat rooftop, drawn by his intuition. As he had suspected, when he arrived there he found a man standing at the edge near the guardrail, gazing down upon the duel in the streets below. It was a familiar figure; it was his old man, Jecht. Tidus stepped leisurely out across the platform and he drew his curved saber. As he paced back and forth behind his father's back, suddenly he heard the gruff, raspy voice of the old man calling to him.

"You finally made it, boy. I was beginning to get impatient. Should've known not to trust a runt like you." Jecht said to him.

"Yeah, well that's what you get for running off on me, old man. I'm here now, and it'll be over quickly for you." Tidus assured him. Jecht finally turned around and looked at his own son. He gazed upon Tidus with poignant pride.

"You got tall… but you're looking thin, boy! Haven't you been eating right?" Jecht asked, and it set Tidus aback for an instant.

"I've managed to get by. Eating too much would just make me slow. Anyway… are we going to do this or what?" Tidus said impatiently. Jecht nodded slowly, but he looked down at the floor for a long moment.

"You know kid, I was only hard on you because I thought it would make you stronger…" Jecht said defensively.

"You were right. It did." Tidus said, unmoved. Jecht nodded again, this time with acceptance.

"Well I can see that now. Alright boy. Let's finish this." Jecht said, and he drew a long saber from its scabbard on his belt. The two of them squared off against each other, and in the next instant they flung themselves forward, swinging wildly. Sparks flew from their blades as they parried and struck against each other, but neither of them could overpower or out-maneuver the other at present. They remained locked in fierce combat.

In the mountain caves below, Suldane and Auron were fighting a desperate battle to keep all the fiends from ascending up to the summit. Biran and Yenke were fighting at the same time in another cave passage, and Luzzu and the Crusaders in yet another, and Jericho and Barbay in the last. On the burnt and ashen fields of the Calm Lands, there arrived one last company of warriors, marching in force. They had arrived late but just in time to charge at the back ranks of the fiends waiting to pass onto the mountain slopes. Captain Kern was with these fair-skinned and war-painted tribal men from the northern isles. They dashed into battle without fear.

At the summit of Gagazet, In the central chamber of the fortress, Yuna was still meditating and holding up her sphere of magic. She was covered with a film of cold sweat. Conchubar turned and looked up at her friends then.

"What do you think you're doing? Make yourselves useful and pray! Concentrate! Help her!" He snapped at them, and then he was silent and returned to his meditations.

"But I don't know how these Red Blade people pray…" Rikku whispered. Lulu stood thinking for a long moment, but then she realized there was something she could do that might help to relax Yuna. She began singing the Hymn of the Fayth. She had a surprisingly lovely and full voice. Rikku slowly joined with her, and their voices filled the chamber and were cast out with the aura.

On the tower where Tidus and Jecht fought, suddenly things were different in a very subtle way. Auron became slower and less perceptive. They could both faintly hear the sound of two female voices singing. Jecht was sluggish then, and almost pacified. Tidus took the opportunity and struck him with his sword. The blade of his saber raked across Jecht's ribs and chest, opening him up with a spurt of red blood. Jecht cried out and reeled backward then. Tidus recoiled in surprise that he had wounded his own father. Perhaps he even felt a touch of remorse then, unwillingly. Jecht stepped back, examining his wound.

"Nice move, kid…" He said raspily, and then suddenly he fell backward over the guardrail and onto the streets below. Tidus ran to the edge of the tower to find him, but he could not see Jecht's body. Suddenly he saw a giant Aeon, with the likeness of Jecht, running through the city and rampaging through buildings. Tidus conjured up his flying Aeons, and Paine carried him down in pursuit of his father while Bahamut soared around to confront him head on. When they landed, Tidus summoned Yojimbo as well. Jecht was cornered in a dead-end street then.

"Hit him with everything you've got!" Tidus shouted, raising his sword high. All at once, he and each of his Aeons went into Overdrive mode, and unleashed their full attack power at once. Bahamut released a power surge, Yojimbo slashed deep with his daikatana, and Paine charged both of her swords with arcing red lightning before she hurled them spinning to strike her foe. Finally, Tidus spun through the air and brought his sword ripping down across Jecht's stomach. The bright, glowing triskele upon Jecht's chest was burst open then, and pyreflies poured out of it. He soon began to disappear.

Across the streets on the other side of the city, Setanta and Yu Yevon were still engaged in their duel. Setanta landed a glancing blow on Yu's hip, and the devil recoiled with a cry of surprise and dismay. Setanta felt the power surging in his arms and up into his blade then, and he raised it above his head with a blasting shout that tore echoing across the city. He brought his sword down then and it hit the street with a thunderclap, cracking it open and sending forth a shockwave that hurled Yu Yevon to the floor on his back. Despite the force of the blast, Yu Yevon got back on his feet rather quickly and tried to flee down the street. Setanta gave chase and was easily able to catch him and corner him once again.

They parried and swung at each other like a pair of jostling whirlwinds. Finally Yu Yevon landed a blow, and it cut across Setanta's midriff. The Champion stumbled backward then, crying out in shock. Setanta wiped a hand over his wound and glanced down upon his own blood as it dripped from his fingers. He looked not to his adversary then, but up to the sky, and he stretched up his hand with his sword pointed high.

"Lord! Is this the end?" Setanta yelled magnificently.

In that moment the sky opened up and the bright blue starlight was almost like a blinding sun. A horrendous roll of thunder came crashing across the air then, and mighty lights strode across the clouds. Remphan's people, the angels, were walking on the wind. They carried great bells and tolled them in an amazing clamour. Then a golden throne upon a sun-blaze chariot came rolling out of the starlight and over the sky. The Lord Remphan sat upon it, while two giant dark thunderheads transformed into black rams and hauled it through the clouds. A voice spoke with divine power then, and it was the voice of the Lord himself.

"I have not sent my people to perish… I have sent you to triumph!" The Lord proclaimed, and his voice echoed around the whole world. Setanta felt the ultimate surge of power flowing through him then, and he roared fiercely as he rushed forward to attack. Yu Yevon could hardly resist him then, and Setanta grabbed the devil by his sword arm and twisted it until Yu dropped his weapon. Then Setanta brought his red blade crashing down on the fiendlord's head, and cracked it open. A magic light came pouring out, and Yu Yevon's body shattered into a thousand pyreflies, all screaming to flee his form at last. It was done, and Yevon was dead.

The body of Sin was now an empty shell, adrift in the sky but dead. An army of Angels strode out of the clouds then, pushing golden cannons into view, glistening like dazzling flame in the sunlight. The Lord reached out with his sapphire-jeweled scepter then, and stirred up the clouds into a whirl, out of which the shapes of white stallions began to emerge, circling wide across the sky until they came riding over Sin's back and through the streets of the ghost city. Setanta saw them coming to pick him up, and he jumped into the air as Sin's body faltered. The foremost steed gracefully took him upon its back, and he rode across the sky. The Angels began their onslaught then, sounding the first dawn of the Age of Remphan, whereupon they fired their cannons, clanged their bells and blasted their brass horns. Choirs sang in mighty and pure voices, the joy of Angels and Gods, and the sky was an amazing symphony.

Sin's body was hammered by fiery cannon rounds, and it turned red with a sudden magnificent burst into millions of pyreflies. Setanta was riding in the wide blue sky, through the clouds and among the Angels. It was as if the cloud-steeds responded to his sheer will, and took him soaring at his pleasure. He went riding around the slopes of the mountain, and every fiend that was touched by these white steeds was instantly scattered into pyreflies. Setanta rode down across the fields, finishing the battle and uplifting his new allies. He rode through the caves and passages, sweeping up all of his men and carrying them along. He rode up to the fortress then and took all of his men, and he reached down to grab up Yuna into his arms. They all rode together up through the sky and into the clouds.

In the the haze of Sin's scattering essence, Tidus stood under the falling buildings, looking down upon Jecht's apparition as he knelt defeated on the pavement.

"It's over now, old man. Sin is done for, and you're free." Tidus said to him. Jecht slowly gazed up at him with a smile.

"You're right boy… now _we_ are free! Hahaha!" Jecht said boisterously. Tidus, Jecht, Paine and the Aeons all faded out into pyreflies at once, and the towers all collapsed into rubble as Sin began evaporating in its descent.

By the powers of Remphan, they all found themselves in the clouds and seated at a divine banquet. The long table before them stretched into the distance, and upon it sat a magnificent feast fit for Angels, and the nectar of the Gods to refresh them. All of the dead sat upon one side of the table, and all of the still living sat on the other side. They faced each other, not with regret or sorrow, but with smiles and laughter. Setanta, Suldane and Conchubar sat across from Murdoch and Culain. Yuna, Rikku and Gippal sat across from their parents. Wakka and Lulu sat across from Chappu. Kimahri and Neela sat facing Biran and Yenke, and Kelk Ronso. Chief Barbay and Jericho sat with their men, across from their fallen comrades. Jecht, Auron, Tidus and Paine sat nearby their friends from Spira. The Lord Remphan sat in all his glory upon a golden throne at the head of the table, while his angels poured the drinks for his guests. They all drank, and sang the praises of the new age, and of the Divinity itself.

They dined and laughed together, speaking only on the lightest of matters, almost as if they were untouched by any of the cares of the world. When this feast had ended, they found themselves placed back upon the world. Those who remained paid homage and made monuments to the dead, all around Mount Gagazet and across the Calm Lands. When Setanta and all his companions walked across the Calm Lands, two angels appeared there to meet them. The first of them brought a golden crown to Setanta.

"Take this corona and the Lord's favor. You must use it to lead the people of Spira into his new age." The angel said. Setanta nodded and bowed graciously. The second angel approached the old shaman.

"Conchubar, you have been chosen as the sage of the Lord. He entrusts you with the wisdom and the power to help guide the people through his age." The angel said to Conchubar, and he waved a wand over the old man, suddenly transforming his black robes to blue, and his red-and-green sash became white. His staff was no longer gnarled, but now it was straight and made of rich ebony. Conchubar bowed, and accepted his new role.

Months later, Setanta sat upon a high seat in the old Yevon Headquarters, which had been revamped into a palace. No longer the dark, musty abode it had been, now it was full of light and music. He was there with his father and with Conchubar. The time had come for them to dispense just rewards to all those who had served them in the campaign. Bevelle, Luca and Kilika were being rebuilt as they spoke. Construction on the temple of Remphan had begun, but it was a grand project that Setanta had sanctioned and it would take many years to complete. Djose temple was being rebuilt into a trading post and bazaar. Diplomacy reigned and there were soon to be written treaties of trade and peaceful relations between the Al-Bhed, the Ronso, the people from Cale Albia and all the islands of the north, and the people of both continents of Spira. Now the three of them saw to their guests as they entered the hall. The first among them was Baerg Boru, from Cale Albia. He and his warriors from the northern tribes were newcomers, having only arrived for the final battle against Sin, yet for their support and show of good faith Setanta wished to reward them.

"Lord Boru, I recognize the sovereignty and independence of Cale Albia and Isa Cairn, and the political liberty of the people of the northern isles. I will send you and your chieftains home with many gifts from my treasury and my armory." Setanta said to the large, broad-shouldered and bearded warlord.

"Thank you, King Setanta, and I am happy to give you this gilded war-horn, a famous heirloom of my clan, and my own axe, in friendship. Call upon me whenever you have need, and I shall sail forth immediately." Baerg said to him. They saluted each other, and then the next guests came forward. It was chief Barbay and chief Jericho. They greeted each other with warm smiles.

"My good friends, Jericho and Barbay… you were the first to join me on my campaign, and you stayed with me until the end. Even now you have remained faithful allies and my dearest companions. Jericho, I give you the plains of Mi'ihen as the territory of your people. You may farm it or graze it as you wish, establish your own markets, and trade freely. I will charge you with the task of tolling and maintaining the roads there. We shall draft up the terms of a treaty in the coming weeks. And Barbay, I give you and your people the Calm Lands as your territory, to farm and graze and establish trading posts as you wish. I charge you with the task of guarding the roads from Macalania to Mount Gagazet, and keeping them free of banditry. We shall write our own treaty as well. I shall also give each of you a generous sum from the treasury and spoils of our campaign. Journey well, my friends!" Setanta said to them. They saluted each other, and then the next guest approached. It was Raven.

"Raven, since you joined our covenant and served an essential role in defeating Sin, I shall give your people sovereignty over their land in Sin's Wake, and you shall serve as guards for the temples of Remphan. I shall commission a temple to be built in your territory, as a gift to your people." Setanta said. Raven saluted him, and then the next guests approached; Luzzu and the Crusader lieutenants.

"You have served honorably, and so I will lift the banishment that was decreed against you by Yevon, and send you home with back-pay for your service as Crusaders and as soldiers in my own campaign. Farewell, and have a safe journey home." Setanta said. They saluted each other, and the Crusaders all smiled and murmured happily to each other. Kimahri and Neela stepped forward next.

"Kimahri and Neela… for protecting Yuna and aiding us in battle, I shall recognize you both as leaders of the Ronso people henceforth, after the loss of Kelk. Mount Gagazet shall remain your territory, and we shall draft treaties for the maintenance of the northern roads and passages. I shall send you both home with many gifts as well." Setanta assured them. They saluted, and then one final pair of guests stepped forth. The Al-Bhed captains.

"Gippal and Kern… now that you lead the Al-Bhed, I shall recognize the sovereignty of Bikanel Island and grant safe traveling status to all the Al-Bhed people throughout Spira. We shall make treaties for the mutual defense of the shipping lanes across the western ocean. You shall have gifts from the treasury and armory as well. Go in peace." Setanta said lastly, and they saluted each other. A brass horn sounded then, and the court was dismissed. All of the guests laughed and cheered as they left the hall, laden with treasure.

Having seen his friends off with fond farewells, Setanta left the capitol under the guard of his best warriors, and returned to the Moonflow delta in the territory of the Red Blade tribe. He spent many months there, relaxing from the victory parades and great feasts that had been held in the weeks after their final battle. He began training new hounds. The Lupines in the river delta and coastal plains were fast and tough, but not quite as reliable as Brutus had been. Setanta went often to the temple he had commissioned to be built around the statue of the fallen angel in the Mi'ihen Highroad. It was a large, round-domed temple, and the road had to be remade to encircle it. On the steps of the temple, facing toward the plains, he had a statue made of Brutus, standing regal and powerful. Still, he always wanted to return home to the village. When he did, Conchubar led the children out to greet him, waving banners of blue and white, the new colors of Remphan in the age of light. Setanta climbed down from his chocobo and went into the village to Conchubar's yurt, and spoke with him for a while.

"You seem at odds with your new role as king… though I think you're well suited for it." Conchubar said to him.

"I'm afraid to give up the throne… because I fear what might happen if I do, and who would try to take it after I'm gone. But I have to admit… I hate living in Bevelle. I hate the way the people worship me and wait around for orders, as if they suddenly can't live without me. Now that the war is over, I feel like my powers are useless. I've tried to observe the wisdom that you taught me, but the people aren't ready for enlightenment. I don't know how to teach them." Setanta lamented.

"The Age of Remphan has only just begun, good Setanta. Give it time, and have patience. You have done well. We need a king with a strong will and a sense of justice, as well as a desire to create life and beauty, to bring back a high culture to Spira. You have been doing this, and doing well. Stay the course, Setanta. I will come to advise you often, and I will seek out other sages to help guide the people to a prosperous future. You don't have to do everything alone." Conchubar assured him.

"What worries me most are the things that I must do alone. I didn't think that I would survive, and I never thought of what I might do with a whole lifetime ahead of me…" Setanta said.

"Take each day by itself. Devote yourself to knowledge, and to the spirit. Grow wise in the ways of Nature, the ways of the Lord. It is like the meditations we underwent in Guadosalam, and each year is like a drop of divine knowledge. A philosopher king in his old age is like a divine presence in the world; hardened, righteous, wise, and beneficent. That should be your final gift to the people of Spira, and to the Lord himself." Conchubar advised him. Setanta nodded solemnly.

"I understand. Forgive me, for being undisciplined. I should have known better." Setanta apologized.

"Think nothing of it. You are doing well. Enjoy life, Setanta. It is going to get better every day now." Conchubar assured him.

Setanta went out onto the coastal plains then, to meet his father where he was fishing on the river banks. Setanta joined him there, accompanied by his two young hounds, one of which was a white lupine with blue eyes, and the other black and red with green eyes. He had taken to calling them Agni and Rudra. They rushed into the water, playing and splashing everywhere. Suldane cursed at them and threw his fishing pole, and they promptly retreated behind Setanta.

"Sorry about that…" Setanta said, trying not to grin.

"What use have we got for those dumb mongrels now that the wars are over? They'd make better rugs than hounds." Suldane remarked boisterously. Setanta chuckled then. Finally the old warlord calmed down and stood looking out over the shimmering waters. "So what's happening now, Lad?" He asked as Setanta stepped up beside him.

"Nothing new. The temple at Mi'ihen is coming along nicely. It will be a grand place, once it's finished. I think I'll go there often to meditate." Setanta said.

"Ahh… excellent. And how is my God-daughter, your sweet young wife?" Suldane asked.

"She barely lets me to go anywhere… but with Culain and Breanna, she's a little too busy to keep up with me." Setanta said. Suldane grinned in deep contentment.

"Well I'm glad you're both back now, so I can see my grandchildren. As soon as they can walk, we'll have such fun…" Suldane said with a laugh.

"Of course…" Setanta said cheerfully. Then for a long moment they were quiet.

"What are you thinking, Lad?" Suldane asked him at last.

"I'm just wondering what to do with all the time. I was almost certain that we would all be in the halls of the Lord by now. Instead we've been given a whole new life, and practically a whole new world. For some reason though, I feel out of place. Is it wrong for me to feel that way?" Setanta asked him. Suldane laughed.

"If it's wrong to feel uncomfortable around moping city-dwellers and degenerate ex-Yevonites, then I don't want to be right!" Suldane said. Setanta chuckled. "But don't worry about it, my boy. We've lived a hard life; a necessary life. Of course no one else can understand us now, but that's fine. We've served our purpose."

"What do we do now, with all of this life left to us?" Setanta asked him. Suldane shrugged.

"I intend to fish, hunt, drink and game it away… well, perhaps it's not all as simple as that. I do want to see my grandchildren grow up. I still need to marry off your sister to a decent man. I think it's enough now, for us to live for family and friends. Sure, women have a way of grinding down a man's resolve, but we all like to have them in our lives, even if we can't always admit it to them. I think I'd rather be with your mother than become a monk, if the Lord will forgive me saying it. So… maybe that doesn't exactly help you, Lad… but you know I was always a fighter, and I've got the same problem you're having. I never planned on living with peace. Battle was my way of devoting myself to the Lord, and now I'm afraid I don't have much else." Suldane said with a sigh, "But, it's only one lifetime, after all. Perhaps the next time I come back, I'll be better suited for other things. You're still young though, and you can easily learn new skills, and teach your children to be hard-working and smart people. You still have plenty of time to enjoy with your wife. Besides that, you're a king now, by the Lord! You've risen far higher than I ever did in life. I think you'll probably find that I can't really advise you much more in life, now that it's come to this. I hope that doesn't disappoint you, Lad. But I'll help however I can." Suldane said.

"You've always been a great help to me, Father. I was never disappointed in you. Really, I was always proud of your bravery and your strength. I always knew I could count on you in battle." Setanta praised him. Suldane grinned happily.

"Thanks my boy. Well, let's go hunt some boar. Maybe that will get my blood moving. At least there's one creature left in Spira that has some fight in them." Suldane said, and he picked up his rifle and his hunting spear, and together they went into the woods, with the hounds dashing and playing around them.

In the village, Yuna was sitting in Setanta's yurt, nursing their boy Culain and their girl, Breanna. Rikku and Emer sat in the yurt visiting with her.

"You know, I heard that Lulu is coming to visit us soon!" Rikku said.

"I'd love to have her here… I think she would enjoy the Moonflow delta. It's so lively and majestic here." Yuna said. She had enjoyed living in Guadosalam, but Bevelle was too depressing to stay in. Much work was still required to restore the lost glory of the ancient metropolis. Yuna had grown accustomed to living in the wilderness with the tribe, however, and she did not want to go back. Rikku had settled there with her as well, occasionally traveling across Spira when the whim took her. She stayed for Yuna, to help her during her pregnancy and with the two newborns, and she slowly began to accept the Red Blade people. She had her own tent in the village now.

"To be honest, I'd really love to visit Besaid soon, but I'm not sure I want to make the journey with these little ones!" Yuna said, smiling at her twin babies.

"I'll go with you whenever you decide to make the trip. Besaid has the best beaches in Spira, for lounging on anyway." Rikku said with a grin.

"Do you think I could come along?" Emer asked.

"Sure, if your father would ever allow it…" Yuna said..

"You'll have to get married first and take your husband along. That's how it works with these tribals, right Yuna?" Rikku said with a scoff.

"That's right, cousin!" Yuna said, totally undaunted by Rikku's harsh reprisal of tribal customs.

"So when will you get a man wrapped around your finger, Rikku?" Emer asked her with a giggle.

"Never!" Rikku said in protest. Yuna and Emer both laughed.

"Don't be silly, Rikku. I saw the way you looked at Gippal up in the clouds… it was so beautiful! What else would you be running around Spira for? You disappear one day with the wind, and then come back again out of nowhere!" Yuna said to her with a mischievous smile.

"I think I'm going for a swim now…" Rikku said, blushing, and she quickly got up to leave the yurt.

"I'll go along!" Emer said gleefully.

"Have fun you two!" Yuna called after them as they stepped out from the folds of the entrance. As soon as they had gone, Setanta came in, smiling warmly upon his wife and children.

"How are you, Love?" He asked as he stepped to sit down beside her on their bed.

"I'm wonderful, my Sweetness!" Yuna greeted him. Setanta kissed her tenderly. She lifted up her children to see their father, and Setanta took baby Culain in his muscular arms.

"Shall we take a walk, Kitten?" He asked Yuna. She nodded enthusiastically.

The two of them stepped out of the yurt, each of them carrying a baby in their arms, greeting the elders and tribal folk as they went through the village and down toward the eastern beach. They walked on the soft sand and in the shallow waters that rolled in gently along the shore. They found a pair of large rocks, and Yuna sat down upon one of them, holding Breanna up to her face and smiling widely. Setanta stood nearby, playing with Culain. As Yuna cradled her baby girl, she suddenly looked upon Setanta, and wondered if now she could tell him what she had wanted to say almost a year ago.

"Setanta… can I tell you something?" She asked him. Setanta turned his warm gaze to her then and smiled.

"Sure Love. What is it?" He asked innocently. Yuna's heart quivered then. She could never bear to darken his spirits when she saw him smile. She took a deep breath and spoke.

"You know that I love you with all my heart, don't you?" She asked meekly. Setanta smiled widely and laughed.

"Of course I do, Love. What's the matter?" He asked her. Yuna hesitated for a moment before she spoke.

"Would you be disappointed in me, if I admit that I still miss the days I spent on my pilgrimage… and the feelings I had for my friends then?" She asked. Setanta gave her a puzzled look, but he shook his head plainly.

"Of course not Yuna. I miss the days of my campaign all the time, and the people who were lost. But I've never regretted anything, and I've always lived by the truth of my heart. In my heart now I want to be with you and my children, and with our people. That's enough for me. Isn't it enough for you?" He asked. Yuna nodded quickly.

"Yes! It's more than enough… it's more than I ever could have hoped for!" Yuna said happily. She spoke no more of it from then on. They spent the day together, and the next morning while Setanta and the children slept, she put on her fur robes and walked out alone onto the beach, with only the dogs following her. Yuna gazed out across the ocean and thought of him. Tidus was still young and pure in her memory, confident and unstained by the tragic turns of their journey. She saw a conch shell lying in the sand and shallow water. She reached down and picked it up, and spoke into it.

"I still haven't told him about you. I don't know if I ever will. I'll always remember you… hopefully without the sadness that I feel now. And I'm sure I'll always love you too. What can I do with a love that refuses to die, but can never truly blossom? I guess maybe time will release me, like it erases old scars and rusts apart all chains. I'll pray for you. May you rest in the grace of the Lord. I love you… Goodbye..." Yuna whispered. She lifted the conch shell then and threw it out far into the waters, and turned around to walk back to the village, to her husband and children.

The ending themes are Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order and At the End by 16 Volt.

Thank you to everyone who has come with me through this story! I have truly enjoyed your feedback and our discussions of the original story and this fanfic! Bless you all!


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